Release Date:  17-Jun-2008

Next week sees the second National Drug and Alcohol Treatment Awareness Week in Bristol and the launch of a new integrated structured day programme in the city to coincide with United Nations Drugs Day (June 26).

The aim of the week (June 23-July 1) is to raise awareness of the range and quality of the treatment available and local services are using the opportunity to launch a new structured day programme treatment service across the city.

Councillor Derek Pickup, Cabinet Member for Care, Tackling Deprivation and Crime, said: “Bristol has earned a national reputation over recent years for its work in tackling and reducing drug offending through a wide range of services.

“What I want to highlight during this week is how much help is available out there in the community to people who want it, all of it free and confidential.

“The payback for the community is a real reduction in acquisitive crime associated with Class A drugs misuse, such as burglary and robbery, which is carried out by users in their local communities order to pay for their drugs.

“It is estimated that every pound spent on drugs treatment brings a return of around £9.50 to society through reduced costs to the criminal justice system.”

The newly-commissioned structured day programme is provided by the Addiction Recovery Agency (ARA), a local charity that has been providing drug and alcohol treatment in the city for 21 years. ARA is providing the service in partnership with the Bristol Drugs Project (BDP) and Nilaari.

The new service will offer a single point of entry into programmes of structured treatment designed to help people reduce their problematic drug use or come off drugs altogether. The programme provides an opportunity for people to address the issues around their drug use, and to find routes into training, education and employment.

ARA Chief Executive Peter Walker said: “We are delighted to be leading on the provision of this new service which will provide a faster and easier route into treatment to enable more people to control their drug misuse and come off drugs altogether.”

The new service will add to the range of drug and alcohol services offered across the city. These include drop-in services, where people can just walk in off the street and talk to someone about the options available, these are provided through the Mobile Harm Reduction Service, which stops at a dozen places around the city; the Bristol Drugs Project (BDP); Community Action Around Alcohol & Drugs (CAAAD) and Nilaari.

For people with alcohol problems the Addiction Recovery Agency offers a drop in at its city centre Alcohol Misuse Service in Little King Street where support is also offered to family and friends of misusers.

There are other, more structured services available which do need an appointment. These include counselling, prescribing or inpatient services such as residential rehabilitation. Full details of the structured services can be found on the Safer Bristol website. www.saferbristol.org.uk

There are also services in Bristol for people who are affected by someone else’s drug use, these are known as ‘carers’ services’ and are for family or friends of drug users. These services are provided by KWADS (Knowle West Alcohol & Drug Service).

Contact Info:

ARA: 0117 300282
Kings Court, Kings Street, Bristol BS1 4EE 

BDP: 0117 9876000
11 Brunswick Square, Bristol BS2 8PE 

CAAAD: 0117 9042297
Stanton House, 188 Lawrence Hill, Bristol, BS5 0DR

Nilaari: 0117 9525742
184 Stapleton Road, Easton, Bristol, BS5 0NZ

KWADS: 0117 9533870
 49-51 Filwood Broadway, Knowle West, Bristol, BS4 1JL

There are also a number of services for young people with issues around substance use. These include the Bristol Early Intervention Service (BEIS) which has a drugs worker in every mainstream school, as well as some special schools and pupil referral units in the city.

For young people with more complex needs, there are three substance-use services offering more specialist interventions. These include the Young People’s Substance Misuse Treatment Service; the Drugs and Young People’s Project and specialist young people’s drug workers in the Youth Offending Team.

Young People’s Substance Misuse Treatment Service: 0117 9285729

Drugs and Young People’s Project: 0117 3772997

Youth Offending Team: 0117 9036480

Author:  

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