Information Sharing
Introduction to Drugs Group
Hello and welcome to our benchmarking group on Drug Action!
We invite you to submit to us examples of best practice, good information sharing protocols and any problems you may be experiencing or progress in tackling the Drugs problem. This group will only be as good as you (as practitioners), make it.
You can use this link to reach the Discussion Forum, where you can share your views on the drugs topic, or ask questions to us and others in the field.
Below, you can access some examples of local information sharing agreements that have been considered to be good practice. We have included three examples; the first, Acacia School case study involves a local community with a school facing a drug crisis in its vicinity. It focuses on problem solving, intelligence and the various elements of the community sharing information effectively, to eliminate the problem. The other two examples, are projects funded under the Targeted Policing Initiative, in which police forces are working in partnership with a range of other organisations, to reduce the drugs scourge.
We are including links to three important schemes, CARAT, Police Arrest Referral Scheme and. CARAT is a scheme underway in prisons, Counselling, Assessment, Referral, Advice and Through care. Since its implementation, there has been a reduction in positive drug testing in prisons, from 24% in 1996/7, to 14% in 1999/2000. With the Arrest Referral Scheme, the point of arrest is used as an opportunity to identify offenders with a drug problem and to make them face up to their drug misuse. The initial pilot schemes have been successful. The Positive Futures scheme, aims to divert young, vulnerable people away from drugs and crime, by using high profile celebrities as role models. You can find all three schemes and further guidance on tackling drugs in the reports section of the drugs.gov.uk website.
Once on the Communities Against Drugs webpage, click on any subheading to access the various reports.
Last update: Thursday, November 09, 2006