Our Chief Executive, Will Haydock, introduces the five key policy steps Collective Voice is asking Government to take to ensure we can save and improve lives.
Action on harm related to alcohol and other drugs is urgently required
In opposition, the Labour Party outlined clearly the scale of the challenge facing the country, and the key ‘missions’ required to turn this situation around. In Government, it has stated that the current approach to healthcare is ‘unsustainable’ and they need to ‘reinvent’ elements of the model. As for criminal justice, a series of independent reviews have identified that the system is in crisis – a diagnosis that has been accepted by Government Ministers.
In addressing these issues, we must talk about alcohol and other drugs. Substance use issues lie behind a significant portion of crime and pressure on the NHS, but fortunately we know that substance use treatment works to help people turn their lives around, improving lives across communities, as well as reducing crime and hospital attendances.
Treatment and recovery support must therefore be at the heart of the Government’s thinking and action on criminal justice and health, as well as other areas of policy including education, employment, housing and beyond.
The situation could not be more urgent. We are seeing the highest rates of drug-related deaths ever recorded and the emergence of synthetic opioids in the UK has prompted the National Crime Agency to warn that ‘there has never been a more dangerous time to take drugs’.
A strategy with clear priorities is needed to drive change
But over a year into the Government’s tenure, there remains a lack of clarity in how their missions will be achieved, and the role of substance use treatment in achieving this. We need Government to outline clear aims and priorities for our field, and offer political leadership to achieve these, ensuring relevant professionals and organisations focus on this life-changing work.
We know this approach – of clear aims and decisive political leadership – works to deliver real positive change in people’s lives. Charities responded promptly, effectively and efficiently to the challenge laid down by Dame Carol Black’s independent review of drugs and the Government’s subsequent strategy. There are now more people in substance use treatment than ever before recorded, and the continuity of care between prison and community has vastly improved. Where Dame Carol saw a sector ‘on its knees’, we have begun the task of rebuilding a treatment system that the country can be proud of.
Where the previous drugs strategy sought to move From Harm to Hope, the Government must now progress from hope to delivery. The Prime Minister has talked about ‘delivery, delivery, delivery’ and the Government must honour this commitment. In terms of substance use treatment and recovery that means developing a plan to continue the work that the Independent Review set out as being so urgent back in 2021. Thankfully as a society we have the knowledge and skills to do this promptly and effectively in this field.
The five steps that Government should take to save and improve lives
Collective Voice is therefore outlining five key steps that the Government should take in relation to treatment and recovery services in England.
- The Government should publish a position statement on drug and alcohol treatment and recovery services to reaffirm their commitment to reduce deaths and crime linked to alcohol and other drugs, and maximise recovery.
- To achieve a world class treatment system the Government must restore the 5-year programme of investment recommended by Dame Carol Black. This funding must be ringfenced and protected against inflation and other cost pressures.
- Residential treatment must be an accessible option in every part of the country, in line with published evidence and Government guidance. The current system of funding and procurement isn’t working – it’s an inefficient postcode lottery.
- The Government should commission substance use treatment and recovery services in prison directly with the provider, separately from other health services, through a partnership including local authorities and prison governors, ensuring appropriate pathways are in place from prisons to both community and residential treatment and recovery services.
- The Government should develop a detailed and fully-resourced plan to deliver the recommendations of the Sentencing Review.
If we get these next steps right, there will be huge positive effects for people who use drugs, their families and wider communities. There will be fewer crimes, fewer children taken into care, less pressure on a criminal justice system in crisis, and people will attend stretched A&E departments less often.
These five steps are the start of a journey
These are not the only steps that Government should take – but we believe they are the essential foundation for the change we need to see.
Collective Voice will continue to work on the full range of issues and opportunities across our field, and in many cases we have already been clear in calling for specific interventions or policies.
In the spirit of focusing on practical delivery, our submission to the Government’s consultation ahead of the 2025 Budget identified a set of specific low or no cost projects that could be started immediately with the support of charities across the sector to deliver on the ambitions of the Independent Review of Drugs. Similarly, we responded to the Government’s work on synthetic opioids by highlighting the need for a more comprehensive harm reduction approach.
Collective Voice continues to work on improving practice in partnership with a range of organisations
While today’s publication is a call to action for Government, there is also a huge amount that Collective Voice will continue to support to improve practice and outcomes right now. This is what we do – bringing partners together to improve the support available for people experiencing harm from alcohol or other drugs. As part of this work, we will shortly be publishing guides to support staff in treatment services and commissioners to improve access to residential treatment, and we are already working with NHS England as they refresh the specification for treatment and recovery services in prison.
But this isn’t just about Collective Voice or our members. If we are to make a real difference to people’s lives, we’ll need to draw on a whole range of skills, perspectives and organisations across our field and beyond, including lived experience organisations as well as NHS and wider healthcare providers including community pharmacies.
This is why Collective Voice is committed to working closely with a range of partners in our sector and beyond, notably the NHS Addictions Provider Alliance, the English Substance Use Commissioners Group, and the College of Lived Experience Recovery Organisations, as well as wider partners like Clinks and Community Pharmacy England. These issues are too important and urgent not to act together, but on many of these key issues, Government leadership can make the difference.
Government faces an unavoidable choice – but there is a right answer
Charities are uniquely placed to help the Government deliver on its missions, and we are already delivering positive change for individuals and communities across the country – but we will achieve even more if the Government provides leadership.
As Dame Carol Black explained back in 2021, “Government faces an unavoidable choice: invest in tackling the problem or keep paying for the consequences.” This is an urgent call for the current Government to make the right choice and tackle the problems related to alcohol and other drugs head on.
From Hope to Delivery: Five essential next steps for Government action on alcohol and other drugs
Our Chief Executive, Will Haydock, introduces the five key policy steps Collective Voice is asking Government to take to ensure we can save and improve lives.
Action on harm related to alcohol and other drugs is urgently required
In opposition, the Labour Party outlined clearly the scale of the challenge facing the country, and the key ‘missions’ required to turn this situation around. In Government, it has stated that the current approach to healthcare is ‘unsustainable’ and they need to ‘reinvent’ elements of the model. As for criminal justice, a series of independent reviews have identified that the system is in crisis – a diagnosis that has been accepted by Government Ministers.
In addressing these issues, we must talk about alcohol and other drugs. Substance use issues lie behind a significant portion of crime and pressure on the NHS, but fortunately we know that substance use treatment works to help people turn their lives around, improving lives across communities, as well as reducing crime and hospital attendances.
Treatment and recovery support must therefore be at the heart of the Government’s thinking and action on criminal justice and health, as well as other areas of policy including education, employment, housing and beyond.
The situation could not be more urgent. We are seeing the highest rates of drug-related deaths ever recorded and the emergence of synthetic opioids in the UK has prompted the National Crime Agency to warn that ‘there has never been a more dangerous time to take drugs’.
A strategy with clear priorities is needed to drive change
But over a year into the Government’s tenure, there remains a lack of clarity in how their missions will be achieved, and the role of substance use treatment in achieving this. We need Government to outline clear aims and priorities for our field, and offer political leadership to achieve these, ensuring relevant professionals and organisations focus on this life-changing work.
We know this approach – of clear aims and decisive political leadership – works to deliver real positive change in people’s lives. Charities responded promptly, effectively and efficiently to the challenge laid down by Dame Carol Black’s independent review of drugs and the Government’s subsequent strategy. There are now more people in substance use treatment than ever before recorded, and the continuity of care between prison and community has vastly improved. Where Dame Carol saw a sector ‘on its knees’, we have begun the task of rebuilding a treatment system that the country can be proud of.
Where the previous drugs strategy sought to move From Harm to Hope, the Government must now progress from hope to delivery. The Prime Minister has talked about ‘delivery, delivery, delivery’ and the Government must honour this commitment. In terms of substance use treatment and recovery that means developing a plan to continue the work that the Independent Review set out as being so urgent back in 2021. Thankfully as a society we have the knowledge and skills to do this promptly and effectively in this field.
The five steps that Government should take to save and improve lives
Collective Voice is therefore outlining five key steps that the Government should take in relation to treatment and recovery services in England.
If we get these next steps right, there will be huge positive effects for people who use drugs, their families and wider communities. There will be fewer crimes, fewer children taken into care, less pressure on a criminal justice system in crisis, and people will attend stretched A&E departments less often.
These five steps are the start of a journey
These are not the only steps that Government should take – but we believe they are the essential foundation for the change we need to see.
Collective Voice will continue to work on the full range of issues and opportunities across our field, and in many cases we have already been clear in calling for specific interventions or policies.
In the spirit of focusing on practical delivery, our submission to the Government’s consultation ahead of the 2025 Budget identified a set of specific low or no cost projects that could be started immediately with the support of charities across the sector to deliver on the ambitions of the Independent Review of Drugs. Similarly, we responded to the Government’s work on synthetic opioids by highlighting the need for a more comprehensive harm reduction approach.
Collective Voice continues to work on improving practice in partnership with a range of organisations
While today’s publication is a call to action for Government, there is also a huge amount that Collective Voice will continue to support to improve practice and outcomes right now. This is what we do – bringing partners together to improve the support available for people experiencing harm from alcohol or other drugs. As part of this work, we will shortly be publishing guides to support staff in treatment services and commissioners to improve access to residential treatment, and we are already working with NHS England as they refresh the specification for treatment and recovery services in prison.
But this isn’t just about Collective Voice or our members. If we are to make a real difference to people’s lives, we’ll need to draw on a whole range of skills, perspectives and organisations across our field and beyond, including lived experience organisations as well as NHS and wider healthcare providers including community pharmacies.
This is why Collective Voice is committed to working closely with a range of partners in our sector and beyond, notably the NHS Addictions Provider Alliance, the English Substance Use Commissioners Group, and the College of Lived Experience Recovery Organisations, as well as wider partners like Clinks and Community Pharmacy England. These issues are too important and urgent not to act together, but on many of these key issues, Government leadership can make the difference.
Government faces an unavoidable choice – but there is a right answer
Charities are uniquely placed to help the Government deliver on its missions, and we are already delivering positive change for individuals and communities across the country – but we will achieve even more if the Government provides leadership.
As Dame Carol Black explained back in 2021, “Government faces an unavoidable choice: invest in tackling the problem or keep paying for the consequences.” This is an urgent call for the current Government to make the right choice and tackle the problems related to alcohol and other drugs head on.
Related Content
Collective Voice welcomes the National Audit Office report on tackling drug harms in prisons
Sadly, this is not a new identification of either the problems or proposed solutions regarding treatment and recovery support in prisons. Given these repeated calls
Collective Voice Women’s Treatment Working Group responds to the Government’s new Violence Against Women and Girls strategy
For too many women, asking for help still feels dangerous, with unpredictable consequences. The government’s new strategy is welcome, but to deliver its ambition we
Collective Voice raises concerns regarding the Government’s response to the Justice Committee’s report on drugs in prisons
We are concerned that the Government is failing to acknowledge the fundamental changes required to improve outcomes. While improving and updating the specification is a