This consultation asked for views on the vision, themes and commitments in the draft Greater Manchester Drug and Alcohol Strategy.
The proposed vision for the strategy was:
To make Greater Manchester a place where everyone can have the best start in life, live well and age well, safe from the harms caused by drugs and alcohol:
The six themes for the strategy were:
A total of 452 responses were received, 340 from individuals and 77 responded on behalf of an organisation (the remainder preferred not to say or did not answer the question). Of these:
The feedback made it clear that drugs and alcohol should be seen as everybody’s business and that the focus should be on encouraging people to behave safely and responsibly. There was also support for our approach which emphasises people’s strengths and assets and the need for services and communities to work together to address drug and alcohol problems inclusive of criminal related activity. Respondents welcomed that the strategy included children and young people and placed emphasis on prevention and early intervention.
There were some concerns expressed about whether we have the resources to deliver the strategy. These realistic concerns underline the need to continue the process of public sector reform that the strategy emphasises and ensure that all our services work better together.
There was also concern that the strategy does not give consider the specific needs of communities of identity and interest (e.g. sexuality, gender identity, ethnicity), therefore we have made sure this is considered in the main narrative of the strategy and will ensure it is a key feature in the strategy’s implementation plan.
Many respondents took the opportunity to share that they feel unsafe at night in areas where pubs and clubs are concentrated and on public transport. Alongside this there was support for a conversation with businesses about responsible trading and social accountability with many saying we should require, enforce or regulate this.
Our vision and themes were positively received and are contained in full in the final version of the Greater Manchester Drug and Alcohol Strategy which was approved by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority on 29 March 2019. It combines emphasis on addressing the underlying causes of drug and alcohol problems, ensuring that the information we provide around drug and alcohol use is accurate and credible, and reducing stigma that may deter those with problems from seeking help.
The final strategy can be accessed here: https://greatermanchester-ca.gov.uk/media/2507/greater-manchester-drug-and-alcohol-strategy.pdf
Drugs and alcohol are everybody’s business. Drugs and alcohol misuse impacts on the health and wellbeing of our residents, the safety of our communities, and the vibrancy and economic future of our town centres and night time economies.
As well as causing health problems, such as cancer, liver cirrhosis and heart disease, we know that alcohol affects the well-being of families, and is a major contributor to domestic abuse, violent crime and public disorder. We know that the issues caused by alcohol are not simply about people becoming dependent and that too many people may be unaware that they are drinking to harmful levels.
We also know that new types of drug users are emerging – they are younger, more likely to take different types of drugs (including new ones), and are more likely to buy drugs online. We also know that street drugs such as heroin, cocaine and ecstasy have become stronger, purer, and therefore more dangerous. There are more types of drugs being misused than ever before, including over-the-counter and prescription drugs, image and performance enhancing drugs such as steroids, and a range of more recently formulated drugs known as New Psychoactive Substances (NPS).
Therefore, it is everyone’s responsibility to make sure we minimise the potential risks and harms they cause. We want this strategy to tackle these challenges head on, so that we have fewer deaths and hospital admissions, more people in recovery and much less cost to our public services.
In order to get this far in developing the Greater Manchester Drug and Alcohol Strategy, we have worked extensively with people working in criminal justice (such as the police and Heads of Community Safety), those working in health (such as Directors of Public Health, Substance Misuse Commissioners and Public Health England), as well as people working for relevant charities, and of course those who have personal experience of the harms caused by drugs and alcohol.
Now we want to find out whether what we have developed so far chimes with what you think. Our Greater Manchester is a place where all voices are heard and where, working together, we can shape our future. Therefore, we would like to understand your views on how we can – together – create a strategy that will significantly reduce the risks and harms caused by drugs and alcohol.
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