A poll by the Portman Group, the body set up by the drinks industry to promote responsible alcohol use, reveals that half of teachers believe they do not have the materials and resources they need to teach the subject properly.

Half of schools surveyed said they only provided one to five hours of alcohol education in a pupil’s school career, while most teachers said this should be increased by two to three times.

Group director Jean Coussins told an audience of 250 teachers at the “Alcohol and Education” conference, run in association with The TES on Tuesday, that the results of the poll were disturbing.

“Young people want and need relevant information about alcohol, delivered effectively,” she said.

The Teacher Training Agency has agreed to supply all providers of initial teacher training with alcohol education resources. The partnership has set up an on-line discussion forum on the issue, www.teach-tta.gov.uk Frankie Sulke, head of teacher training at the agency, said: “I am sure that this forum will prove to be a valuable tool in helping to share good practice in this area.”