Agenda item

7.1       Ms Lonergan presented the report.

7.2       Ms Jacob said that tobacco, drugs and alcohol was a broad area. Although there was some overlap with drugs and alcohol, tobacco was more variable. The strategy could be huge, as would the implementation plan. Ms Lonergan said that the common theme was addiction but agreed that it was an ambitious area of work. Workshops would be considering understanding stigma, whether there should be stigma around those addicted to drugs compared to alcohol and tobacco. Addiction was a health problem not a societal problem it affected everyone, and this was why such a wide approach was being taken. The starting point was ‘why did people need drugs and how could they be helped particularly into housing and work?’

7.3       This was an all-age strategy. Ms Lonergan was asked for a breakdown of the figures in terms of the impact on children.

7.4       Ms Lonergan said that she would be trying to measure the impact of addiction on members of the public who felt unsafe in public areas. She said that work shops were working with colleagues in parks and open spaces to understand how to measure park usage and safety. They were also working with waste services with regard to nitrous bulbs and lithium batteries; how they could be identified and monitored. They also discussed trends with waste management and whether they had noticed an increase or decrease of substances in public spaces.

7.5       In response to questions from the Vice Chair, Ms Lonergan said that there was no data around ADHD. As part of the autism launch last week, work was being done with the lead from SE London to understand how some of the data could be interrogated, to understand those who were diagnosed with neurodivergent, what the health implications were and how that differed. It was hoped that more detailed information could be collected from clients within the service.

7.6       Ms Lonergan said that cumulative impact of addiction was collected as part of the DTMS data. As well as addiction there were mental health issues, and she was working with mental health support to work out how to support people with a dual diagnosis as they attempted to come off an addiction.

7.7       Ms Lonergan said that she was hoping to undertake work on understanding the level of vaping in Lewisham by young people in schools. Data showed that young people were drinking less alcohol, but more were smoking vapes. As part of this strategy, she was also looking at young people who were looked after by parents/carers with substance addiction and how well they were supported in the borough and what support was needed. The Vice Chair said that targeted messaging was required to explain why vaping was not a good idea because there were health disadvantages.

            RESOLVED that

          (i) the report be noted,

          (ii) a breakdown of all ages in the data be provided,

          (iii) information be provided on vaping and the impact on children and young people; and

          (iv) a large number of people in prison had neurodiversity. In order to prevent them from being exploited, enter crime and then often prison, they should be supported as much as possible. Consideration should also be given as to how Lewisham could influence policy with future governments.