Youth Planning and Development

Substance Abuse Prevention

Chesterfield County Youth Services has a long-standing commitment to and involvement in efforts to prevent tobacco, alcohol and drug use among our youths as part of its mission to promote positive youth development and prevent delinquency.

The most successful substance-abuse prevention efforts involve the entire community and require the implementation of multiple strategies in multiple sectors of the community. In Chesterfield County, a substance-abuse prevention coalition called SAFE works to prevent substance abuse. The coalition includes representatives from county government, schools, youth-serving organizations and members of the community. SAFE is incorporated with the State of Virginia and has nonprofit tax-exempt status from the Internal Revenue Service.

Youth Services provides staff support and leadership in weaving a wide array of individual organizational efforts into the coordinated community approach promoted by SAFE.

For more information about SAFE and how to become involved in Chesterfield County’s substance abuse prevention efforts, visit the SAFE Web site at www.chesterfieldsafe.org or contact Youth Services at 804-796-7100.