About Putting the Pieces Together

About Putting the Pieces Together

Putting the Pieces Together is a training manual that was developed by the WRDATF to harness an integrated approach to working with young people, parents and communities on the subjuct of drugs and alcohol.

The Putting the Pieces Together manual and training course is a resource to allow workers with or without an addiction/drug education background to engage in a relevant and supportive way with their clients in a group work setting around the issues of drugs and alcohol Brief History The Putting the Pieces Together Resource was developed in the Western Region and launched in 2009. The Minister for Drugs at the time, Mr John Curran, funded additional printing of the manual to enable it to become a national resource. Training has been delivered widely across the Western Region since its development. Training has also been delivered nationally via the Regional and Local Task Forces, Foroige and the National Youth Council of Ireland. Following evaluation of the manual and training the WRDATF commissioned a second edition of the manual which included updating the content in line with (and inclusion of) the DEWF (Drug Education Workers Forum) Quality Standards in Substance Use Education guidelines. The second edition manual and training are now available via the WRDATF

Aims: 

• To act as a guide and a resource for persons working with young people of mixed ages and abilities in out-of-school settings
• To provide a practical approach to working with young people, parents and communities on the subject of drugs and alcohol

Objectives:

1. To provide relevant up-to-date information on drugs, their influence and effects.
2. To provide practical age and experience appropriate integrative activities to be used in group work.
3. To provide a holistic approach to the education and prevention of substance use
4. To explore substance use issues with the aid of visual representations.
5. To integrate activities aimed at enhancing self -esteem and developing skills for life such as communication, listening, and decision making.
6. To highlight the relationship between drugs, alcohol and health (mental, physical and sexual)
7. To outline the impact of substance use on relationships
8. To provide information on best sources of information and referral for your target group