Anti-drug pledge: Chief Executive Donald Tsang signs his support for the Knotting Hearts Action drug awareness campaign.

Details of the school drug testing trial scheme in Tai Po have been refined according to feedback from various sectors, Commissioner for Narcotics Sally Wong says.

After a briefing with teachers and school social workers today Ms Wong said not only the consent of parents and guardians be sought, the refined scheme now also requires the protocol and the consent form be read, signed and dated by the participating student. These materials will be distributed in November.

Police and other law enforcement agencies will not be informed of the personal data of any student, she added.

"A project officer will act as a bridge between the Government and the student drug testing team to better safeguard students' privacy," Ms Wong said.

The project officer will be an executive officer from the Tai Po District Office. They will advise participating schools on the data privacy requirements, observe the drug tests conducted by the team and offer views on whether it has adhered to the protocol procedures.

The Government will give resources to the Lutheran Social Service Cheer Lutheran Centre in Tai Po to provide the drug testing team and the case manager assigned to the student upon any positive test result or upon self-referral.

About 5% of participating students from a school will be randomly selected and tested by the drug testing team. Specimens with positive results will be sent to the Government Laboratory for confirmatory tests.

Under Secretary for Education Kenneth Chen said the Government is confident students and parents in Tai Po will widely support the trial scheme, which is conducive to fostering a drug-free campus culture.

Briefing sessions for the 23 secondary schools in Tai Po will be organised in the next few weeks so teachers, students and parents further understand the scheme. Click here for details.

Officiating at an anti-drug activity today, Chief Executive Donald Tsang called for support for the trial scheme, which will enhance students' resolve to stay away from drugs and prompt abusers to reconsider their habit and provide them with help.