Drug treatment services set to benefit from £3.7m national fund

Article date: 4 October 2022

St Helens Borough Council will receive the funding as part of the National Drug Strategy, to help support work to tackle drug use in the borough.

The national strategy focuses on three areas aimed at reducing the impact drugs have on society. These include breaking criminal supplies, offering world class treatment programmes and shifting demand for recreational drugs.

The funding will be used to increase the capacity of drug treatments and will be led by the council's public health team in conjunction with the two commissioned services Change Grow Live and Young People's Drug and Alcohol Action Team.

As part of the funding each area will establish a 'Combatting Drugs Partnership' and in St Helens Borough this will be looked after by the Safer St Helens Executive who will report its progress to the St Helens People's Board.

Councillor Anthony Burns, Cabinet Member for Wellbeing, Culture and Heritage, said: "The toll of drug misuse is a heavy one that is not just felt by the user but their friends and family too. This funding will have a huge impact on the work we do with our partners in supporting people to get the right treatment to tackle drug misuse. Over the next three years it will help to increase the availability of treatment, meaning that more people get access to life-changing interventions that will help them address the physical and mental issues that drug misuse can have on someone."

Councillor Jeanie Bell, Cabinet Member for Safer, Stronger Communities, added: "Drug use has an impact on every member of our communities through criminality, access to services and much more. These can all add up, and one of the best ways to tackle this is to help people address their drug misuse and reduce the demand for drugs in the first place. This, along with our partnership with the likes of Merseyside Police, should help to have a positive influence on our communities, making them stronger places to live."

The council and its partners will use the initial funding to build treatment services and expertise to get more adults and young people the treatment they need and reduce drugs related harm in the borough.