UPFRONT
Drink and Drugs News is published by CJ Wellings Ltd, Romney House, School Road, Ashford, Kent TN27 0LT
Editor: Claire Brown e: claire @ cjwellings. com
Advertising manager: Ian Ralph e: ian @ cjwellings. com
Reporter: David Gilliver e: david @ cjwellings. com
Designer: Jez Tucker e: jez @ cjwellings. com
website: www. drinkanddrugsnews. com
Website support by wiredupwales. com
Subscriptions: e: subs @ cjwellings. com
Printed on environmentally friendly paper by the Manson Group Ltd
Cover: borchee / iStock
CJ Wellings Ltd does not accept responsibility for the accuracy of statements made by contributors or advertisers. The contents of this magazine are the copyright of CJ Wellings Ltd, but do not necessarily represent its views, or those of its partner organisations.
IN THIS ISSUE
COVER STORY: CRIMINAL DIVERSIONS
6
INSIDE
14 16 20
4 NEWS Alcohol deaths fall in Scotland; government rough sleeping pledge 10 WELLBEING Space for women 11 MENOPAUSE Simple actions to help 12 ADVOCACY Hidden dependence 18 WOMEN Facing impossible choices 19 EQUALITY Wellbeing for all 24 APPG Strategy with Dame Carol Black 25 LETTERS & COMMENT Your say
Supporting veterans Beautiful Monsters
Barriers to access
‘ A personal journey of healing and growth... It goes beyond quitting a substance, it’ s about building a life I could enjoy.’
Ste, volunteer at Acorn, from our DDN partner updates at drinkanddrugsnews. com
DDN is a self-funded independent publication. Our bespoke partnership packages provide an opportunity to work closely with the magazine. Please get in touch to find out more.
How many chances do we give to engage?
A perspective from Ireland gives us fresh insight into diverting people away from the criminal justice system( page 6). What are the practicalities of implementing a health-led approach? How many‘ chances’ do we give people to engage with health services? How quickly can we join up people with screening and interventions? How can we make sure resources aren’ t pulled away from others who need them? And how can we judge these schemes on the broader definition of success – including engagement with the wider range of support services including housing – rather than just the referral numbers? These questions preoccupy us up and down the country – so why are we so cautious about keeping health and wellbeing at the centre of drug policy, justice policy, rehabilitation policy?
One thing we can be sure of – keeping respect, empathy and kindness at the forefront of services brings culture change from the grassroots. So while we wait for a stronger steer from Westminster, let’ s keep sharing what works well. Claire Brown, editor www. drinkanddrugsnews. com and @ DDNmagazine
WWW. DRINKANDDRUGSNEWS. COM NOVEMBER 2026 • DRINK AND DRUGS NEWS • 3