Alcohol and Drug Partnerships (ADP) 2021/22 annual returns: summary report

1. Background

The level of harms from alcohol and drugs in Scotland are high in comparison to the rest of the UK and Europe, and cause avoidable damage to people’s lives, families and communities. Tackling the high level of drug related deaths in Scotland is a priority for the Scottish Government.

On 20th January 2021, the First Minister made a statement to parliament which set out a National Mission to reduce drug deaths and improve lives through improvements to treatment, recovery and other support services.

The National Mission annual report sets out the progress made from then to March 2022 by national government, local government, and partners in Health and Social Care and the third sector against the National Mission Plan. This report focuses on the progress and work of Alcohol and Drug Partnerships (ADPs) against that plan.

Scotland’s 30 ADPs bring together local partners including health boards, local authorities, police and voluntary agencies to co-ordinate the response to substance use issues. They are responsible for commissioning and developing local strategies for tackling problem alcohol and drug use and promoting recovery, based on an assessment of local needs.

As part of the 2019 Partnership delivery framework ADPs are required to report to the Scottish Government on specific alcohol and drug funding allocations and progress made against national outcomes. This report summarises the results and findings of the 2021/22 Scottish Alcohol and Drug Partnership (ADP) Annual Report survey returns completed as part of this commitment.

The report presents the data according to the six outcomes of the National Mission Plan. It also includes data related to drug deaths, and some the six cross-cutting themes overarching the work of the National mission as summarised in Figure 1.