Two-thirds of year 10 pupils who vape daily show signs of nicotine dependency

A survey of pupils in years seven and 10 from a small sample of Welsh secondary schools has found that the proportion of year 10 pupils using vapes every day is around nine to 10 per cent. Among these daily vapers, around two-thirds showed signs of moderate or high dependency to nicotine using a validated measure.

The impact of this dependency is being seen by schools, who are also reporting increasing problems with vape use and problem behaviours as a result. Headteachers have reported that vape use has become a growing issue over the last two years, leading to them having to monitor specific areas of their site for vaping (for example, toilets). School leaders also reported an increase in school exclusions relating to vaping in the past academic year.