This briefing paper is part of a series produced by the Drug Education Forum, for schools and others involved in drug education or informal drug prevention. Life skills education is an interactive process of teaching and learning, which is being adopted around the world as a means to empower young people in challenging situations and is the recommended approach to children and young people’s personal, social and health development within formal and informal education settings. In particular, life skills are a group of psychosocial competencies and interpersonal skills that help people make informed decisions, solve problems, think critically and creatively, communicate effectively, build healthy relationships, empathise with others, and cope with and manage their lives in a healthy and productive manner.