There is a tendency nowadays for particular viewpoints about the genesis of psychiatric illness to be portrayed on one or other of the mass media. These rather superficially point an accusing look at families and achieve little beyond engendering guilt and unhappiness in the relatives of patients. Moreover, this tends to be done in such a way as to imply that these are the only approaches consistent with human concern and empathy, and the efforts of others are likely to be ignored or vilified. The form in which some of these programmes are presented is often disturbingly close to documentary, and the manner of their presentation is such as to appear to the ordinary person to be the voice of authority and solid experience. Clearly, different opinions should be allowed expression, but when complex problems are shown in this one-sided way there is a serious risk that the result will be distress and bewilderment among patients, their relatives and the community at large, and that patients in need of help will be discouraged from seeking it. A way must be found for those who have daily experience of these disorders, and who have studied them in depth, to be given adequate opportunities to present their views.

The Appeals and Building Committee of the College, under the chairmanship of the President, Professor Sir Martin Roth, is engaged in launching a £2 million appeal with the aim of establishing a permanent home for the College together with an adequate Fund to finance its running costs. This is a formidable task, which must be achieved within the next few years. While it seems necessary for the building to be sited in London, this will in no way alter the policy of encouraging the Regions to participate in shaping the future identity of the College and of sustaining and reinforcing their long-standing traditions of educational and scientific activity. An article about the present home of the College appears on page 4.

The next Quarterly Meeting of the College will be held in London from 3 to 6 July, 1972.

The Inaugural Banquet will be held at the City of London Guildhall on Monday, 3 July.

Those wishing to attend are earnestly requested to return their Booking Form (enclosed with the Presidential letter of 22 May) by the stated date.

In the report On the State of the Public Health 1970, the Department of Health and Society Security have commented on some of the effects of setting up the special clinics for the treatment of drug dependence. They consider that there is room for guarded optimism about the containment of heroin addiction, and state that in 1970 14 treatment units were issuing only about two-fifths of the amount of heroin used 2½ years earlier (respectively over 3,000 grams each month in 1968 and 1,358 grams in December 1970). The number of new patients in 1969 was 652, but only 353 in 1970. The numbers of first notifications of heroin addiction under the age of 21 were 291 in 1969 and 140 in 1970; there were 1,173 first notifications to all DDA drugs in 1969, but only 762 in 1970; and second and subsequent notifications were 1,977 in 1969 and 1,489 in 1970.

Attention is specially drawn to the Medals and Prizes which are offered annually by the College. The conditions of award are set out fully in the Year-Book.