Drugs and alcohol workforce action plan 2023 to 2026

Executive Summary

Delivery of Scotland’s National Mission to reduce drugs deaths and improve lives is dependent on having in place a skilled, resilient workforce. It is therefore vital that our drugs and alcohol services are able to attract, retain, and support staff. However, the drugs and alcohol workforce currently face significant challenges, particularly in relation to recruitment, retention, and service design. This ‘Drugs and Alcohol Workforce Action Plan’ sets out the key actions that the Scottish Government will deliver to address these challenges.

In order to achieve a sustainable workforce, we require effective joint working, and a multipronged approach, where we simultaneously make progress against the five pillar framework of ‘Plan’, ‘Attract’, ‘Train’, ‘Employ’, and ‘Nurture’ as outlined in the ‘National Workforce Strategy for Health and Social Care in Scotland’^[2]. This 'Drugs and Alcohol Workforce Action Plan' sets out the Scottish Government’s priorities over the next three years, laying out how, and when, we aim to initiate delivery of these.

Plan

We need to improve data capture and facilitate improved understanding of the entire drugs and alcohol workforce. In support of this we have already undertaken and published ‘Scotland’s Alcohol and Drugs Workforce: Mixed- Methods Research Compendium’^[3].

We will now seek to:

• Complete a comprehensive workforce mapping exercise which accurately articulates the scope of the drugs and alcohol workforce across Scotland;
• Improve understanding of workforce demographics and support a workforce which is more diverse and reflective of the communities that it cares for;
• Build upon the workforce mapping exercise to support improvement in workforce planning and service design; and
• Improve drugs and alcohol workforce data capture.

Attract

We must take steps to make the sector an attractive place to work. In support of this we have already made multi-year funding available to drugs and alcohol services. We will now seek to:

• Capitalise on all opportunities to raise awareness of the lifesaving work undertaken by those employed in the drugs and alcohol sector, ensuring that they are afforded equal status with colleague in other settings;
• Improve pathways into the drugs and alcohol sector; whilst also seeking to improve understanding and knowledge amongst the potential future workforce.

Train

Workforce retention is essential for the delivery of consistent, high quality and safe services. Those working in drugs and alcohol services require opportunities for career progression. In support of this we have already begun facilitating training provision across a range of key areas. We will now seek to:

• Support the development of a learning pathway to communicate and signpost available training opportunities to the entire drugs and alcohol workforce, regardless of sector;
• Continue to progress training opportunities which will ensure that services are informed and fully empowered to support the mental health needs of people who use drugs and alcohol;
• Develop and implement new operational protocols which will detail how mental health and substance use services should work together to provide high quality care;
• Expand the existing Transforming Psychological Trauma Implementation Coordination Network (TPTIC) network, and recruit a National Lead specialist with experience in substance use and trauma-informed practice;
• Facilitate the development of competencies for workers who support people who use drugs and alcohol;
• Identify the training opportunities that drugs and alcohol workers should undertake;
• Provide support for the development of continuous career development opportunities; and
• Facilitate the development of standards and guidance for all services that use peer support workers, ensuring they are appropriately valued and have career progression opportunities, in line with Fair Work principles.

Employ

Recruitment to the drugs and alcohol sector is critical to reducing vacancies, caseloads, and pressures. In recognition of this we have already leveraged Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) funding to support additional Alcohol and Drugs Partnership (ADP) recruitment. We have also supported the recruitment of up to 20 additional SDF A/RWTP trainees per year through annual investment of £480,000 for the remainder of this parliament in 2026. We will now:

• Support participants with a history of using drugs and alcohol to enter and sustain employment; and
• Support organisations and professions to develop pathways to support people with lived and living experience to enter and pursue careers within the drugs and alcohol workforce.

Nurture

Support for employee wellbeing is at the heart of our workforce development efforts. We want to reduce caseloads for different parts of the system and ensure psychological support and wellbeing services are provided as standard. We have already sought to support improved workplace mental health and wellbeing through continued support for a range of national initiatives. This work has been supported through ongoing monitoring and highlighting of best practice. We will now seek to:

• Capture the views of the workforce through an online survey;
• Encourage employers to give consideration to existing resources which can promote positive staff wellbeing;
• Publish a guiding principles document which will allow organisations to provide effective support to employees with lived and living experience of drug and alcohol use;
• Explore how the principles of the Health and Care (Staffing) (Scotland) Act 2019 may inform service design going forward; and
• Take advantage of every opportunity available to recognise and promote the vital lifesaving work undertaken by those working in the drugs and alcohol sector.

Further information on all actions planned, or in progress, that the Scottish Government will seek to deliver, including when these will be initiated, is provided at in our Actions Framework at Annex A.