Me, Myself... Us – THE DDN CONFERENCE 2026
FINDING THE BEST OF US
Me, Myself... Us kicked off with powerful and inspiring presentations from LUF, Dr Michael Blackmore and Paul Townsley. Photography by nigelbrunsdon. com and JellyPics
‘ F or the last 15 years LUF and Red Rose Recovery have been bringing volunteers to the DDN conference,’ said peer-led Lancashire User Forum( LUF) chair Nicholas Stones.‘ We’ ve brought hundreds. It’ s one of the biggest days in our networking calendar.’
The forum had now been running for 20 years, said LUF’ s Chris Whitehead, evolving into a volunteer-led movement that was making a real difference across Lancashire.‘ For a lot of people here it’ s genuinely life-changing,’ added Scott Williams – as it was often their first stay in a hotel or first meal in a restaurant. But it was also about connection and meeting people from across the UK, feeling part of a national community.
LUF held quarterly forums where community members and professionals could come together to share their experiences and ideas. These gave people a chance to be heard and shape the services they used, helping to create genuinely lasting bonds between individuals and organisations. Volunteers also set up stalls at locations across the county every month, including at the Royal Lancashire Agricultural Show and Preston station.‘ We’ ve built real relationships with the British Transport Police,’ said Williams.‘ And we’ ve not done it in cuffs.’
‘ It’ s not just about handing out leaflets – it’ s about proper human connection,’ stressed Whitehead.‘ It’ s about changing perceptions and breaking down stigma, one conversation at a time.’ LUF also staged‘ sleep outs’ on the streets to raise both funds and awareness.‘ Our latest is to help children who don’ t get holidays, so they’ re going to get a weekend camping with the funds we’ ve raised,’ said Donna Mansfield.
This year the forum was celebrating its 20-year anniversary with the LUFStock weekend in August.‘ We want to get people together and show that recovery can be fun,’ said Whitehead.‘ Recovery is possible. We’ ve seen it, we’ ve lived it and we’ re standing proof of it,’ the team said in unison.
LOADING THE GUN‘ I’ ve got a family history of addiction – genetics loads the gun but it’ s our lifestyle that pulls the trigger,’ said Dr Michael Blackmore, a GP in Scotland who’ d experienced addiction and recovery from both sides.‘ Like with most people, my first drug was alcohol,’ he said, after which he’ d moved on to cannabis, LSD, amphetamines and ecstasy.‘ I loved the way drugs took me out of myself, changed the way I felt inside. And as a junior doctor I had this disposable income.’
A knee injury, however, led to his introduction to strong pain medications.‘ I wasn’ t really in pain anymore but I had that existential angst that a lot of us have. Then I got back to work, and they gave me the keys to the sweetie cupboard. I’ m in A & E and a little old lady comes in with a fracture and I give her 1mg out of 10mg of morphine.’ After she was discharged he still had the
6 • DRINK AND DRUGS NEWS • SEPTEMBER 2026 WWW. DRINKANDDRUGSNEWS. COM