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‘ It would be great if we can find ways to shift the conversation from what needs to happen to how we make it happen.’
ROUND IN CIRCLES
Having worked in the sector for a long time, it’ s disheartening that we’ re still having the same conversations – about people with complex needs being passed between services or falling out of them altogether. We’ ve long known what makes a difference: trauma-informed care, stable housing, support from people with lived experience, and properly joined-up systems.
What’ s frustrating isn’ t that people aren’ t trying – frontline services are doing their absolute best in tough conditions. It’ s that despite all the evidence, pilot schemes and passionate advocacy, we’ re still struggling to embed these approaches at scale.
It would be great if we
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can find ways to shift the conversation from what needs to happen to how we make it happen. Amy Hitchins, by email
EYES ON THE FUTURE
I am currently in prison in Scotland – I’ ve been in and out of prison most of my life. I started drinking alcohol when I was 13 years old and mostly drank at the weekend as I was at school Monday to Friday. I eventually got expelled from high school and sent to a residential school, leaving at the age of 16. I had a few casual jobs working with a cleaning company, then a Frankie and Benny’ s restaurant, then on the fairground and the highways.
I would say my drinking got out of control when I was 19 years old. I was drinking every day and if I couldn’ t get money for alcohol I was shoplifting it. I lied to family and friends to get money for alcohol and also stole from my family. I was bringing the police to my mum’ s address on a regular basis, coming home drunk and was also violent towards my family – I smashed my mum’ s car window when I was drunk. I’ ve been in and out of prison since I was 19 or 20 – I’ m now 41. All my offences have been committed under the influence,
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and mostly all my sentences have been short. The longest I’ ve done is one year, until now.
I’ ve been in six years and my next parole is April 2026. I’ m doing everything I can to become a better person and am finishing an offencefocused programme so I can progress to the‘ top end’ and then to the open estate. I’ ve got no real family left now and it has been really hard since my mum passed away in 2017. I just wish I could turn back time so I could spend the time I never spent with her. My gran passed away in 2006, my uncle in 2022 and my mate was murdered in 2001.
I just want to better myself now and keep myself busy here – I work in the timber shed and go to my offence-focused programme and the recovery café. Philip, full name and prison supplied
HELD BACK
Before my current sentence I had been introduced to Subutex a number of years ago in prison and became addicted. Because I was spending all I had and more, there came a point where I had to mention it to a drug worker as there had been a few positive urine tests. The worker explained that I could go onto a prescription of methadone if I provided three random positives. I did so and have been on methadone ever since – ten years or more. I found this massively affected my life, my relationships and progress. I have missed out on jobs, holidays and positive relationships.
I have been released homeless with no place, no address and area to give the prison – this made collecting my prescription a problem. I
‘ In all my times of distress I’ ve never been offered the chance to go onto buprenorphine... and when I was informed of it by an ex-user, I was shocked to have never heard of, or been made aware of, it being an option.’
have in the past managed to get my dose to a low amount ready to be substance free, but due to my circumstances I felt all the hard work was for nothing as I could not give information for‘ area and pharmacy’. So I bought it illegally off others, which had me travelling long distances by car / train / you name it – I did it all to get my methadone.
Then I had a massive mental health breakdown and whilst seeking treatment I was on a script, but due to my mental state I would often forget to pick it up – worse on a Friday as it was closed over the weekend – or be so ill I would be too paranoid to leave my flat. Work stopped and relationships broke down and on top of this, due to limited availability for spaces or dispensaries, I would be in a chemist seven miles away from home and be left to walk, rough and unwell.
I had to eventually tell work that I was on a script
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/ ddnmagazine @ ddnmagazine www. drinkanddrugsnews. com
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