Drug taking, smoking and drinking are falling among young people, a national survey shows.

Twenty-five per cent of the 8,000 youngsters aged 11 to 15 questioned by the NHS Information Centre last year had tried drugs, compared with 29 per cent in 2001.

The proportion who had never drunk alcohol rose from 39 per cent in 2003 to 46 per cent in 2007, and there was a fall in the number who reported drinking in the preceding week.

The Government said that the figures showed that health messages were getting through. The survey suggests that about 640,000 of the 3.1million 11 to 15-year-olds in England were likely to have drunk alcohol in the past seven days, and 300,000 were likely to have taken drugs.

The number of teenagers who had tried smoking also dropped, from

53 per cent in 1982 to 33 per cent in 2007. About 6 per cent of pupils smoke at least once a week - the lowest figure since pupils' smoking was first measured in 1982.

In 2007, 17 per cent of pupils said that they had taken drugs in the past year and 10 per cent in the past month. Taking cannabis is most common drug used by 11 to 15-year-olds, followed by sniffing glue, gas, aerosols or solvents. Although the number of teenagers who drink has fallen in recent years, how much they are drinking has fluctuated.

In 2007 those who drank alcohol in the previous week consumed an average of 12.7 units, equivalent to more than six pints of normal strength beer or nearly one and a half bottles of wine, slightly down on last year.

Overall, by the age of 15, some

88 per cent of pupils will have drunk alcohol, tried drugs or smoked.

A Department of Health spokesman said the figures showed that initiatives to educate young people on the risks of smoking were working. He added: “In the five years since the NHS Information Centre was opened, £30 million has been spent to provide friendly, confidential advice to young people about illegal drugs through FRANK.

“We will continue our work through FRANK, the alcohol strategy and our smoking campaigns to push the numbers down further.”

Commenting on the figures, Norman Lamb, the Liberal Democrats' health spokesman, said: “While the fall in children experimenting with drugs is welcome, the percentage of children trying drugs is still shockingly high.

“The Government must ensure that public health messages on the dangers of drugs and alcohol continue to get through.”

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