Government funding to tackle drug and alcohol addiction in Stockton
Leading work to tackle drug and alcohol addictions causing “hidden harm across all walks of life” in Stockton will be stepped up with another £2.5m in government grant money.
Stockton Council plans to spend the extra cash from the Department of Health and Social Care on boosting and enhancing services for substance misuse, treatment, recovery and support. Leaders say they are broadening the work they do to tackle drug and alcohol misuse and its far-reaching effects.
It will be the fourth year of the government grant as part of a 10-year Home Office drug strategy titled “From Harm, To Hope”, which started in 2021, aimed at putting more people in treatment, caring for prison leavers, improving service quality and reducing drug and alcohol-related deaths. Stockton has since become a regional and national leader, a cabinet meeting heard on Thursday (March 13).
The grant money is expected to go to providers including the North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust and charities like Change Grow Live, Bridges and A Way Out and Hartlepool and Stockton Health’s award-winning outreach nursing service. It will be used for improving services and meeting needs like bereavement and mental health support, help into jobs, alcohol in-patient detox.
Council leader Councillor Bob Cook said: “This is extra money that we’ve got for the next year. The way it was spent in previous years, it’s brought good results.
“I would suggest it’s a good way of spending to ensure we can reach the people that need the money to get them out of a drug or alcohol habit. It’s money worth spending to ensure that people are able to live a life without drugs or alcohol.”
Cllr Pauline Beall said: “Substance misuse affects many people. It’s not just people who get a lot of media coverage, it’s a lot of hidden harm across all walks of life.
“It isn’t just addressing the anti-social behaviour that is discussed. It’s very far-reaching.
“The impact on people’s health and wellbeing through the addictions people have, whether it’s drugs or alcohol, are far-reaching and can be really long-standing on somebody’s life. Sometimes the effects aren’t immediate, it’s in later life when they’re actually showing.
“We’re continuing this work, broadening it as well.
“We’re also trying to alleviate the criminal activity, whether it be perceived or actual, and trying to be very innovative with the monies and partnerships we’ve got. We’re addressing lots of issues.
“So although it’s very much a drugs strategy grant, it’s an improvement in people’s health and wellbeing in the borough. It impacts on lots of lives, not just the people who have problems with substance misuse, but their families, friends and associates as well.”
Cllr Clare Besford pointed to the work of Bridges: “The specialist family and carer service that Bridges are able to offer I think makes a difference to these families’ lives. To be able to continue that is excellent.
“Many of the names on here can actually be found in the Wellbeing Hub on Wellington Square. We’re able to provide those services as a walk-in service directly off the street, which is really quite innovative for Stockton and definitely one to celebrate.”
Public health director Sarah Bowman-Abouna said: “The total funding that has been provided for 2025-26 is approximately £2.5m.”
She said much of this was captured in the council’s plan for high-value contracts. This sets out £22m in substance misuse service funding over the next six years, though £9m of government funding is “not guaranteed”.
Ms Bowman-Abouna said: “Some quite significant partnership and stakeholder work was done in 2024-25 which informed the development of the plans for spending of the grant in that year. That included quite a lot of work with partners, the community and service users to inform the sorts of support that was required.”
“That support yielded some really great outcomes. For example, it led us to be recognised as a regional lead for continuity of care for prison leavers, and also national lead for waiting times for assessments.
“The recommendation is that the work is continued and proposals for 2025-26 build on and continue the work that’s been delivered in previous years. This is the fourth year we’ve received this grant through from government.
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