Warwickshire tells government about drugs problem
The UK needs to address the stigma attached to drugs and provide more aftercare for drug users.
Those are just some of the recommendations from Warwickshire that have been made to the UK government following the biggest ever consultation on the national drugs strategy.
The county’s response has been co-ordinated by Warwickshire’s Drug and Alcohol Action Team (DAAT) who in recent months have consulted with members of the public, the police, health services, local authorities, county councillors and organisations directly involved in providing help and guidance to people with drug problems in Warwickshire.
Although people in Warwickshire do not feel that additional legal powers to deal with drugs are necessary, they would like to see a coordinated approach to tackling drug and alcohol misuse.
There is particular emphasis on the need for better education of young people, and support for families who are suffering because of substance misuse.
In August the Warwickshire DAAT, who are responsible for delivering the drug strategy at a local level, launched a questionnaire posted on the http://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/drugs website.
This asked people what they thought about some of the main issues raised in the drugs consultation. The public were also consulted via a series of road shows.
A half-day consultation event was organised by the DAAT at the start of October to build on the results of the questionnaire and formulate a joint response from the county to the government.
Around 60 delegates attended the ‘Drugs: Our Community, Your Say’ consultation event at Garden Organic, Ryton-on-Dunsmore, which was chaired by Councillor Richard Hobbs, Warwickshire County Council’s Portfolio Holder for Community Protection.
The consultation revealed that Warwickshire people feel the most important aims for the new national drugs strategy should be:
1. Better education and intervention for young people and families, especially the most at risk.
People in Warwickshire feel that more effort needs to be put into addressing drug-related issues before they arise and that intervention shouldn’t be delayed until once something has become a problem.
2. Improved treatment, social care and support services, especially for the problem drug using population.
The Warwickshire consultation highlighted that there are gaps in aftercare and a lack of post-treatment support for drug users. People who responded to the consultation also felt that the waiting time for appointments for counselling for drug users is resulting in a drop-out from services.
3. Greater and more visible disruption of drug supply at all levels.
People in Warwickshire feel it is highly important to communicate success stories about enforcement and the disruption of supply to all those involved in the illegal drug industry.
4. Better public information.
The fear and taboos around drugs prevents important information such as that related to harm reduction being widely communicated, and may prevent people from seeking treatment, according to those who responded to the Warwickshire consultation.
5. Further reduced drug-related crime and anti-social behaviour.
The main issue for Warwickshire is to get offenders who misuse substance into treatment, and this can be done by identifying users at point of arrest and taking positive action.
Commenting on the consultation results, Kit Leck, Manager of the Warwickshire Drug and Alcohol Action Team (DAAT) said:
”This has been the first real opportunity for Warwickshire to respond to the Government’s drug strategy on this scale. We have been delighted by both the large number, and the wide range of people who contributed to this exercise.
"As well as responding to the Government, we will use the information gathered to develop Warwickshire’s local drug strategy.”
The full consultation response from Warwickshire can be found on the Warwickshire Drug and Alcohol Action Team (DAAT) website at http://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/drugs, click on the link ‘Response to the Home Office’s consultation on the National Drugs Strategy’.