Out and About with Andrew and Jos

Bristol’s £3.4m boost to support people affected by drug use

New pilot project takes city-wide approach

Bristol City Council has been allocated £3.4 million to participate in a Home Office pilot which aims to reduce drug-use as well as drug-related crime and deaths across the city.

Project ADDER (Addiction, Diversion, Disruption, Enforcement and Recovery) is a new intensive approach to tackling drug use, which brings together local councils, police and health services to combine targeted policing with enhanced treatment and recovery services.

Working with partners, the council will use the funding to provide those involved in druguse with enhanced treatment and recovery programmes plus additional employment and training opportunities. Targeted support to prison leavers and offenders with drug addictions will also be provided, along with support for families affected by drug-use who are at risk of being involved with the criminal justice system.

The programme has already been piloted in five locations in England and Wales. Bristol has been selected as one of six additional sites covering eight local authorities to build on the existing programme and focus the two-year funding on enhanced treatment provision including providing support for those leaving prison and recovery support around employment. Councillor Asher Craig, Deputy Mayor with responsibility for Communities, Equalities and Public Health, said: “We want Bristol to be a place where everyone can live safe from the harms caused by drug misuse. The impact of addiction goes beyond the users themselves and often extends to their families, loved ones, wider communities, services and businesses. Tackling this wider sphere of impact sits at the heart of our new drug and alcohol strategy which aims to improve the support for everyone.

“This funding will enable us to meet the actions set in the new strategy and comes at a vital time. The pressures of the pandemic continue to have a detrimental impact on people’s lives and in some cases have created an environment where we are seeing a rise in drug use.”

The services offering treatment and recovery support include Bristol ROADS (Recovery Orientated Alcohol and Drugs Service), a partnership between Bristol Drugs Project, Developing Health and Independence and the Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust.

Dr Ben Watson, Consultant Addiction Psychiatrist at ROADS, said: "The ROADS partnership currently offer a range of free services to support recovery.

This funding is very welcome and will enable the partnership to offer additional therapeutic interventions and support that will help not only the individuals themselves, but also the people and communities surrounding them."

The new Drug and Alcohol Strategy for Bristol 2021-2025 aims to prioritise prevention and support the development of a city where everyone has the right to physical health and mental wellbeing, safe from the harms of alcohol and other drugs.

Avon and Somerset Police have been allocated £1.5 million as part of Project ADDER, to protect people who are vulnerable to drug-related crime and develop enhanced, co-ordinated law enforcement activity to disrupt drug supply in the city and reduce drug-related harm and offending.

Bristol Commander Superintendent Mark Runacres said: “For far too long, drug taking, dealing and the associated anti-social behaviour and crime has blighted the lives of too many people in Bristol. Bristol. Whether it’s a parent walking their child to school passing used needles, a family living in a flat next door to persistent drug dealing, or a vulnerable person being exploited by ruthless drug dealers, we are all too with familiar with the harm and misery that drugs cause in our communities.

“Our approach will use the local knowledge of neighbourhood policing teams, who understand their communities and the specific problems which need to be addressed. We need to balance enforcement with diversion and education to make lasting change.

“We’ll improve pathways to support and grow existing pathways to support for the most entrenched and problematic drugs users in the city. This is an opportunity to break the cycle of misery that all too often goes hand in hand with drugs misuse and dealing.”

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ASHTON GATE VACCINATION CENTRE TO MOVE TO UWE FROM AUGUST 4TH

This move is prompted by the reduction in vaccination capacity at Ashton Gate as Lockdown eases and the stadium prepares for the full return of fans in August.

Vaccinating will continue at Ashton Gate until Wednesday, August 4th and the increased number of walk-in clinics across the area, along with the addition of the Vaccination Centre at UWE Bristol, means that vaccination capacity during July will be at a peak for the Programme. Visit www.grabajab.net for a full list of vaccination options.

From August 4th, all existing appointments for first and second dose vaccinations will move to the Vaccination Centre at UWE and will take place on the same date and time. Everyone affected will be contacted by text message from the National Booking Service.

There is no need to contact the NHS about your appointment. While we would encourage people to attend the Vaccination Centre at UWE if possible. There are also lots of appointments available in South Bristol, at GP clinics and Community Pharmacy sites close to Ashton Gate Stadium. You can also find an up to date list of all the walk-in clinics in BNSSG along with options for booking your appointment at www.grabajab.net.

The Vaccination Centre at UWE has a large free car park and is easily accessible by car, while the UWE Campus is a 15-minute bus journey from central Bristol. If the change of location is unsuitable, people can amend their first or second appointment by logging into the National Booking Service and selecting ‘manage my booking’. Dr Tim Whittlestone, Clinical Lead for BNSSG Vaccination Programme, said in an online statement: “Ashton Gate Stadium has been a flexible and generous partner for our large scale Vaccination Centre and we would not have been able to achieve the strong vaccination uptake in our area without Ashton Gate’s help. On behalf of the Programme, I’d like to thank everyone at the Stadium for their incredible support over the last seven months.

“I’d also like to thank all the staff and volunteers who have supported us at Ashton Gate; they have been phenomenal and we look forward to continuing to work with them at our new Vaccination Centre at UWE or elsewhere in our Vaccination Programme.”

Mark Kelly, Managing Director, Ashton Gate Stadium, said: “It has been an honour and a privilege to help play such a vital role in the vaccination programme here in the South West. The stadium sits in the heart of its community and when we redeveloped it as a multi-use venue, we could never have imagined what was to unfold. We are thankful we’ve been able to help and wish our newfound friends and colleagues in the NHS the very best.

“We now look forward to the full return fans and guests to the stadium and will continue to support the NHS in any way we can, including the smooth transition of the vaccination centre from Ashton Gate to UWE.”

The Vaccination Centre at UWE is located at the Conference and Exhibition Centre on UWE Bristol’s Frenchay Campus and has a capacity of up to 2,000 vaccinations a day.