Allied forces
The RSA has set up Recovery Alliances to support current and former drug and alcohol users in Bognor Regis and Crawley, piloting an approach developed through the User Centred Drug Services project.
Through mixed research methods that included workshops, focus groups and a survey of 156 drug and alcohol users, the RSA identified common issues affecting users’ recovery, such as education, employment and peer support. Many respondents emphasised the need for a supportive community of former users who could share advice and experience. The elements necessary to initiate and sustain recovery can collectively be called 'recovery capital'.
In Bognor Regis and Crawley, the new Recovery Alliances - local groups of service users, service providers, employers and others (including some RSA Fellows) – will be testing out new ways to build recovery capital. Ideas have included the development of a resource map showing the availability of peer support across a particular region; a peer-led radio service providing 24-hour advice, interviews and discussion; the production of a short film to train health practitioners in how to provide effective help to drug and alcohol users; and the creation of a central drop-in point, or 'hub', giving a human face to recovery.
The RSA will also be working with various stakeholders to assess the recovery capital available to substance misusers in Peterborough. This data will be used to develop mechanisms to strengthen or build recovery capital where needed. Rebecca Daddow, who is leading the project on behalf of the RSA, said: "Only by identifying all the factors that can strengthen or weaken recovery will we know how to make best use of resources and support, embedding recovery in the life of the community."
To find out how to join one of the local Recovery Alliances, contact Rebecca Daddow.
Through mixed research methods that included workshops, focus groups and a survey of 156 drug and alcohol users, the RSA identified common issues affecting users’ recovery, such as education, employment and peer support. Many respondents emphasised the need for a supportive community of former users who could share advice and experience. The elements necessary to initiate and sustain recovery can collectively be called 'recovery capital'.
In Bognor Regis and Crawley, the new Recovery Alliances - local groups of service users, service providers, employers and others (including some RSA Fellows) – will be testing out new ways to build recovery capital. Ideas have included the development of a resource map showing the availability of peer support across a particular region; a peer-led radio service providing 24-hour advice, interviews and discussion; the production of a short film to train health practitioners in how to provide effective help to drug and alcohol users; and the creation of a central drop-in point, or 'hub', giving a human face to recovery.
The RSA will also be working with various stakeholders to assess the recovery capital available to substance misusers in Peterborough. This data will be used to develop mechanisms to strengthen or build recovery capital where needed. Rebecca Daddow, who is leading the project on behalf of the RSA, said: "Only by identifying all the factors that can strengthen or weaken recovery will we know how to make best use of resources and support, embedding recovery in the life of the community."
To find out how to join one of the local Recovery Alliances, contact Rebecca Daddow.
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