In this HEPI Debate Paper, Arda Ozcubukcu and Professor Graham Towl explore how higher education institutions might approach illicit drug use within their student populations, suggesting that a zero-tolerance approach may cause more harm than it prevents as those who need help do not come forward for fear of punishment. The report instead proposes a more tolerant and outcomes-based approach to illicit drug taking on campus, prioritising the prevention of drug harms and shifting the focus from criminal justice to health and wellbeing.