Substance Misuse
What are we tackling?
- The availability of illegal drugs
- The illegal or irresponsible sale of alcohol
- Dealing with those offenders whose offending is driven by substance misuse
- Increasing the awareness of the harm that drugs and alcohol can do and delaying or preventing experimentation
- Dealing with the root causes of problematic substance misuse treatment services and the support services available to those leaving formal treatment
How will we tackle it?
- Implementation of the Children and Young People’s Substance Misuse Plan
- Implementation of the Adult Drug Treatment Plan
- Implementation of the Drugs Intervention Programme
- Implementing activity with the licensing authorities
- Disruption of drugs markets, particularly those involving Class A drugs
- Providing lifestyle opportunities including education, training and employment, social skills development, debt advice and aftercare support to enable ex-users to integrate with the community after treatment and sentence
Education and re-assurance
- Universal substance misuse education for 5-16 year olds
- Targeted substance misuse education for those most vulnerable to problematic use
- Awareness and support for parents and carers, involving them in delivery of substance misuse education
- Work with community members and youth organisations to reinforce schools based prevention work and messages in the community
- Outreach and information for substance misusers to raise awareness of risks involved and promote harm reduction
- Education for front-line workers to raise awareness of user support needs, family support needs and to promote assessment, intervention and referral to specialist services where necessary
Prevention/Diversion
- Tackle the social factors that increases the risk of developing substance misuse problems and provide targeted prevention for those high risk groups
- Promote responsible retailing of alcohol
- Provide diversionary activities for young people in the community
- Ensure that front-line workers know how to recognise the early signs of substance misuse
- Provide opportunities to minimise harmful substance misuse e.g. Needle exchange, Immunisations, brief interventions
- Provide a range of opportunities for addicted offenders to access treatment to reduce their offending. This includes young offenders who can access the Resettlement and Aftercare Programme (RAP) through the Youth Offending Team
- Provide 1st Aid training and advice to prevent death from substance misuse
- Remove drug and alcohol-related litter
Enforcement
- Disperse drug-related gatherings and those involving under-age or anti-social consumption of alcohol
- Enforce licensing legislation and restrictions
- Catch and convict drugs traffickers and dealers and alcohol smugglers
- Seize assets bought with the proceeds of illegal trade in drugs or alcohol
- Catch and convict prolific or persistent offenders whose offending is driven by addiction to drugs or alcohol
- Address drink and drug driving
- Deal swiftly and appropriately with substance misusing offenders who fail to comply with treatment
Re-engagement
- Provide opportunities for chaotic substance misusers to get their lives back on track before, during and after treatment e.g. Medical, legal, financial advice, tenancy and employment support etc
- Provide more treatment, aftercare and support services of even higher quality, with greater choice, shorter waiting times and which allow equal access to substance misusers from all backgrounds and localities
- Improve joint working between services to meet the comprehensive needs of users with complex patterns of substance misuse and/or additional disabilities/special needs
- Develop self help e.g. ‘Make it Clean’ groups, and provide recovering udders with help/support to rebuild trust at home, at school/work and in the community
The Sheffield Drug and Alcohol Action Team (DAAT) is part of the Safer Community Partnership structure, and is responsible for the delivery of the national drug and alcohol strategies in the city. For further information please visit www.sheffielddaat.org.uk