In the past year, the charity quizzed 1100 under-18s in Dundee and Angus on topics such as violence, safety and volunteering.

They also found a fifth of young people surveyed knew someone who had experienced violence either at school or on the street.

Asked what they thought the biggest risk to young people was, 59% of respondents said drugs. Alcohol also scored highly (45%), as did bullying (38%) and gangs (35%).

A large proportion of respondents (68%) felt they were not consulted about issues in their area that affect them.

Laurie Matthew, co-ordinator of Eighteen and Under said, “This survey has thrown up a number of issues which need further investigation and this should be done in consultation with young people.

“In particular, a worrying number of young people do not feel completely safe and it would be good to explore this further to try to find out the reasons and how to address it,” she added.

Shaun Taylor from the charity said Eighteen and Under worked with children of all ages to teach them about keeping safe.

He added that the concern about drugs was an issue throughout Tayside, not just in certain areas of Dundee.

“It is not a particular scheme issue — it’s all around Dundee,” he said. “But young people aren’t consulted and don’t get the opportunity to raise concerns.”

Mr Taylor said Eighteen and Under is publishing a book called See Us, Hear Us about child safety that will be distributed to schools next month.