The Audit Commission national report, Drug Misuse 2004 identified improvements in the local response to problem drug use since the earlier report Changing Habits (2002), but also challenges for local partnerships and national agencies.
Local authorities, health services, police and probation partners are currently preparing the drug misuse component of local crime and disorder strategies for 2005 to 2008. These offer an excellent opportunity for local agencies to sign up to strategies which will provide drug users with an effective pathway to recovery together with good prospects for a sustained and stable lifestyle. This in turn will help make communities safer for everyone.
This report is aimed at decision makers in:
- Local authorities
- Education services
- English primary care trusts (PCTs)/Welsh local health boards (LHBs)
- Police, probation
- Prison services
While the report is primarily concerned with England, fieldwork was carried out in Wales to learn from the different arrangements that apply there.