Current Community Safety Initiatives

Lead: Council/PCT: Head of Drugs Strategy

Deputy: Police: Chief Inspector - Crime

Named Contact: Community Safety Senior Officer - Claire Sills - Claire.Sills@Stockton.Gov.Uk

Other Agencies: All members of Safer Stockton Partnership and all members of the DAT. Voluntary Sector

Our objective is to reduce the harm caused to the community and families by the misuse of drugs and to reduce drug related offending

Background

Nearly 41% of respondants to our consultation programme said that Reducing Drug Related Offending should be top priority, making it the second choice overall. Within the ASB priorities 42% of respondents said that People Using/Dealing Drugs was their main concern followed closely by 38% identifying Alcohol Misuse/Street Drinking.

The National Treatment Agency (NTA) monitors the performance of DATs. The Healthcare Commission rated Stockton DAT as the top performing DAT in the Country in terms of the processes in which it takes an interest in 2007.

Successive public opinion surveys by Cleveland Police Authority and Stockton Council continue to show that a large number of residents support the idea that people who misuse drugs should be able to access treatment to help to change their behaviour but that drug dealers should be punished.

Heroin continues to be the main drug that is identified through arrests and for those entering tretment. We know that there has been a steady increase for those using Cocaine, Crack and other opiates with the trend rising 1% per year for those entering treatment. Cannabis use is also a cause for concern.

We know that the age of those in treatment shows an upward trend and this tells us that those misusing drugs are an ageing population with the main group aged 25-34. This indicates that we are not seeing an increase in new young users. This also suggests that we are maintaining people in treatment for longer periods and this allos treatment to be more effective.