Home Office Good Practice Seminars
Violent Crime Seminar
Workshops - 16 September
Workshop 1
Tackling Alcohol and Substance Misuse
Paul Unsworth and Sgt Paul Robinson, Darlington CDRP
The contributors delivered a presentation about the partnership working within Darlington CDRP. They stated that although they were police officers, they were presenting as CDRP staff, delivering a health message. They pointed out that their own agency had taken on a wider agenda and now tackled alcohol and drugs with a health perspective.
Darlington CDRP has built a strong partnership. Co-location of staff helps with 120 people sharing the workplace – this was recommended in a joint best value review. This facilitates communication and information sharing as a matter of course.
The partnership has worked hard to engage with as wide a range of key agencies as possible. Strong contacts have been made with those individuals within agencies who have decision making power over mainstream funds. All partners seek to "add value" to each other's work.
The partnership is linked into the Darlington Assembly, which involves about 250 people, half of whom are local residents.
In order to engage with such a wide range of agencies and individuals, the partnership had to find a common language or currency, and shared goals - Neighbourhood Renewal and deprivation. The Local Strategic Partnership (LSP) is the mechanism to deliver and future funding.
Intelligence, information sharing and tasking are achieved by the CDRP by use of by weekly tasking and co-ordinating meetings, mirroring the Police National Intelligence Model (NIM), and held the day after the local police TACG.
Partnership performance is managed by the "Performance Plus" project management tool. The partnership is currently working to develop shared performance indicators.
Residents in Darlington have identified alcohol as one of the biggest issues in the area however, all mainstream funding is in tackling drugs.
The local hospital conducts the Paddington Alcohol Test with patients accessing A & E services.
The partnership is currently involved in developing a local alcohol strategy.
Agencies within the partnership have realised they cannot work in isolation, and that an action by one agency can have a knock on effect with others. So, if the police were planning a big heroin "bust", they would inform health contacts to ensure methadone supplies were available.
Finance and commissioning are key areas to get right. The CDRP has a finance officer funded by the PCT.
Download the Tackling Alcohol and Substance Misuse PowerPoint presentation (1,380 Kb)