We are looking for a CEO who will give vision, direction and leadership to the organisation. The succesful applicant will develop our engagement with national policy and develop the organisation as a key advocate for families in Scotland.

We require an inspired leader and an excellent communicator with significant experience of working at strategic level; a proven record of people management; and strong business planning, marketing and financial management skills.

Closing date: 24 March 2012

Salary: £32,710 pa*.

Cover letter

CEO job description

Application form

Equality and diversity form

* NB, this post is initially funded for 28 hours a week, with the potential to increase to 35 hours a week with a salary of £40,887 pa dependant on funding.

If you would like us to post you an application pack please email info@sfad.org.uk or phone the office on 0141 221 0544.

Please note that CVs will not be accepted.

SFAD is an equal opportunities employer.

You can learn more about our work in our latest annual review (479Kb pdf)

This question will be addressed in a new report by the UK Drug Policy Commission (UKDPC), which will be published next month.

Parliamentary event

Scottish Families Affected by Drugs funded the Scottish element of the UK-wide research, on which the report is based. We are profiling the report and inviting discussion with a special event at the Scottish Parliament on Thursday 8 March, from 12.30 to 2.15pm.

Attendance is by invite only and there are a limited amount of places.  If you are interested in attending please do get in touch.

Have your say

Lisa Finlayson, who sat on the research steering group on behalf of Scottish Families Affected by Drugs says,

‘This important event offers an opportunity for those with an interest in family support services throughout Scotland to hear examples of best practice and gaps in provision.

‘I hope that the research presentation will stimulate discussion on how we can improve and expand upon existing family support services’.

Contributions

Nicola Singleton, Director of Policy and Research for the UKDPC will present the report.  We are delighted that Labour MSP Kezia Dugdale is sponsoring the event. Additional speakers will be announced nearer the time.

Keith Fowler

I became a Board member of Scottish Families Affected by Drugs in January 2009, after the death of my son Perry from poly drug use (drugs & alcohol). My main aim in joining the Board was to get better support for families after a drug related death and to promote a better understanding of what families living with a drug user can go through.

Understanding

I’m often asked why I give up my time for this organisation. It is an easy one to answer – it is because of what myself and my family have been through, and because I speak to many other people going through similar situations. We need an organisation that recognises the needs of families.

I passionately believe in our aims, which include strengthening the voice of families affected by drugs misuse; increasing families’ capacity to cope through information and support and improving the quality, scope and reach of local support for family members.

Vision

As Chair of the Board, my vision for the organisation is to employ more Community Development workers so we can get into more communities to support and help families. We are also working to expand our helpline services to include more web-based information and support.

On the advocacy side we need to gain influence with policy makers to make sure that they understand the issues families face, the needs they have and the positive impact they can have on the recovery of their relative.

Enthusiasm

So I, along with the rest of the Board and staff, have big plans for the coming year. We know, however, that 2012 is going to be a difficult year due to the financial climate for the third sector. We are already thinking creatively about securing funding for Scottish Families Affected by Drugs to grow.

It is going to be a challenge but we have a strong, diverse Board and an enthusiastic team who are working hard to get over the hurdles that this year is going to bring.

And can I take this chance to wish you a good 2012 and to say thank you to everyone who supports our work. It’s by working together we can have the greatest impact.

Get in touch

Do you have a question for Keith? Email us at info@sfad.org.uk

As you may be aware, we are conducting a survey of everyone who has an interest in our work.

This is to give us insight into the needs of families who have been affected by drugs misuse and to get a better understanding of the issues facing them. It is also to help us deliver effective communications and events.

The results  will help us to design services and areas of work that best serve families in Scotland. It will also help us back up our funding applications and policy work with evidence.

Complete the survey

The more people who fill out and return the survey, the clearer a picture we will get of the needs of our members.

You can access the short survey here.

Thank you

May we take this opportunity to thank you for your interest in our work and to thank you in advance for completing the survey.
Please note that the deadline for completing your survey is Tuesday 31 January.

All completed surveys will be entered into a prize draw, and the winner will receive a cheque for £50.

If you have any questions or comments about the survey, or if you have any difficulties in accessing or completing it, please contact us.

The average problem drug user is male, lives on the west coast of Scotland and is aged 24 to 34, according to a new study about the prevalence of problem drug use in Scotland.

According to the report, the estimated number of individuals with problem drug use in Scotland in 2009/10, aged 15 to 64 years old, was 59,600.

The study, titled ‘Estimating the National and Local Prevalence of Problem Drug Use in Scotland 2009/10’ has been carried out by Information Services Division, a support service for NHS Scotland.

Ageing population

It is worth noting that problematic drug users are getting older. These latest statistics show that the age group 35 to 64 accounted for 43% of problematic drugs users in 2009/10. In 2006 this proportion was 34%.

Problem drug use is worst in Scotland’s big cities, with the exception of Edinburgh, and in the west coast regions of East Ayrshire and Invercylde. Rural areas such as the Highlands and Islands have relatively low prevalence levels.

Impact on family networks

Scottish Families Affected by Drugs CEO, Clare Beck, says, ‘This study indicates that providing family support is more vital than ever. Each of these estimated 59,600 individuals has family members who are impacted by their problematic drug use.

‘As users are getting older, their family networks expand from parents to include partners and children. All these family members need support and services in their own right. And with children there are obvious sensitivities and child protection issues.

‘At Scottish Families Affected by Drugs, we hope that evidence about the scale of the family problem will soon be published and recognised alongside the user problem.’

Commenting on the report, David Liddell, Director of Scottish Drugs Forum, said, ‘It is vital that the issues which have impacted on parents and grandparents – and which have caused too many to seek oblivion through drugs – are not passed onto to their young people to create of a new generation of problem drug users.”

Read the report

The statistics are available in full on the Information Services Division (IDS) website.

Visit the IDS website to read a publication summary and the full report.

Yet stigma remains.

‘Family members feel isolated by feelings of shame, embarrassment, hopelessness and guilt, Sheila explains. ‘There is little doubt that the stigma attached to drug use acts as a barrier to families seeking support for themselves.’

Write to the media

The media can help end stigma

Sheila says, ‘The forum feels that the media play a huge role in stigmatising substance misusers and their families.

So the Grampian Family Support Forum, which is a collection of family support, kinship care and bereavement groups from across the Grampian region, decided to write to the Press to endorse positive news articles and express sadness at negative articles.

Clearly, the more groups and individuals who write to their local press regarding articles about drugs misuse, the more effective the campaign will be. ‘We believe that if other support groups throughout Scotland do the same, we will be more effective.’

Talk to professionals

As well as writing to the press, the Grampian Forum encourages people to let professionals, such as GPs, know when their words or attitudes cause hurt or offence. ‘Stigma comes in many forms. Professionals can stigmatise without even realising it. Even the tone of your voice can lead to tears behind closed doors that you will never be aware of,’ says Sheila.

What can you do?

‘We realise that the war against stigma is too big for us to tackle alone,’ says Sheila  ‘However, we hope that we can influence other family members throughout Scotland to unite and help us tackle this issue.

‘It is important that when a professional ‘wounds’ you with his words, you must make them aware of it, in a gentle manner, in order that they are aware and do not inflict pain on anyone else.’

If you write to your local paper or talk to a professional about how stigma has affected you, please let us know what you did and what response you got, so we can inspire others to take action as well. Together, we have more chance of breaking down barriers, ending isolation and tackling stigma.

Inspiration

These are just two examples of action taken by the Grampian Family Support Forum.

There was an article in the Sunday Post about a woman who had been prescribed an opiate blocker for lung cancer, and as a result was still alive years later having been told she had months to live. The article was entitled ‘Junkie’ drug. Sheila wrote to the editor, introduced the Forum and asked for an explanation as to why he felt it necessary to use such terminology. She says, ‘ I didn’t only get a reply, I got an apology and a promise that he would be more careful in future.’

There was an article in the Evening Express about a community project in Aberdeen involving recovering addicts. One of the members of the Grampian Family Support Forum wrote in to congratulate the project manager and the recovering addicts on the success of the project. Sheila further endorsed this by writing in on behalf of the Forum.

This critical question is being looked at by the Drug Strategy Delivery Commission (DSDC), who published its first report last month. The DSDC exists to scrutinise the effectiveness of the ‘Road to Recovery’. Its first report is aimed at improving outcomes for people, their families and communities.

Scottish Families Affected by Drugs board member Eleanor Robertson is one of the members of the Commission.

Family support

Supporting families affected by drugs misuse is one of the key priorities set out in the Road to Recovery, and the strategy acknowledges that families have a role to play on the recovery of their relative, as well as needing services of their own.

Chair of the DSDC, Dr Brian Kidd, explains why progress made in this area has not been explicitly covered in this first report. He says,

‘The fact that there are not specific recommendations on families does not mean this is not implicit in the report. All the recommendations around both the “effectiveness of delivery” and “children affected by parental substance misuse” (CAPSM) agendas expect to see real progress in this important area.

‘What we have done is to engage in depth with the issues chosen as priorities and have focused on how all of these important factors may contribute to improved outcomes. Improved impact on the lives of people affected by substance use in Scotland must become the real measure of how successful our strategies and structures have been.

‘We have met many partners face to face to discuss their issues and are evolving our mechanisms for getting more input from as wide a range of stakeholders as we can.

‘Eleanor Robertson has been a member since 2009, meaning that the perspective of families and communities is never forgotten in our deliberations.

Children

While acknowledging the large amount of activity in the CAPSM area, the DSDC identified three areas, based on the evidence received, where further work should be considered by the Scottish Government if impact was to improve: the quality and reliability of national data held; the effectiveness of cross-cutting work at national and local level and; the governance and accountability of local delivery.

Recommendations

DSDC recommendations include:

• Ministers should consider a more closely aligned process to ensure the obvious synergy between drugs and alcohol is achieved
• Alcohol and Drug Partnerships should be able to demonstrate that assessment and regular measurement of recovery capital underpins individual treatment plans
• The Scottish Government should be able to demonstrate the impact the Scottish Drugs Recovery Consortium (SDRC) is making in promoting the recovery of individuals, family members and communities from drug problems.

The DSDC is independent from the Scottish Government. It was created in 2009, superseding the Scottish Advisory Committee on Drug Misuse (SACDM).

Read the report

Read the full DSDC report on the Scottish Government website.

Read a comment on the report by Dr Brian Kidd, Chair of the DSDC.

Road to recovery

Read the Road to Recovery strategy on the Scottish Government website.

Read the Road to Recovery: One year on on the Scottish Government website.

There are over 60,000 known problem drug users in Scotland

Our latest annual report, for the financial year 2010 – 2011, is now available on our website.

Our report highlights the scale of Scotland’s drug problem. For example there are more than 60,000 known problem drug users in Scotland, with more than 10,000 new drug users in 2011.

And when you consider that for every problem drug user, some four people are directly affected, it is clear that there is a deep need for the work that we do with family members.

Need for family support

The report includes the story of one lady who goes to a family support group. Her son started taking drugs aged 15, and quickly became out of control and was put in care. She says,

‘I coped on my own until I found Jericho House’s family support meeting…When I went to the meeting it was to get help for my son, but I discovered the meeting was to support me… I was given hope that my son and I would recover from his sickness.’

Key achievements

Some of our key achievements listed in the report are:

• Families were represented on several key recovery initiatives and members participated in research projects
• We helped create the Grampian Family Support Forum
• We undertook a full audit and review of the helpline and recruited new management expertise
• We raised awareness of the needs and abilities of family members through TV and radio appearances
• We strengthened board membership and governance

Read the report

Download the report (PDF 479Kb)

If you would prefer a hard copy of the report, please contact us.

If you have been affected by a drug-related death, could you take part in the survey to help ensure appropriate services are available in the future?

Improved services

The National Forum on Drug-Related Deaths is working to improve the way people who have lost someone through a drug-related death are treated and supported.

To take this work forward the forum has set up a working group on family support, chaired by Keith Fowler, who is also chair of our board.

The group is looking at how service providers can provide the best possible advice and support to families and carers following a drug-related death.

Take part

To help with this work, the forum needs to know more about the experiences of people who have lost someone in this way. If this is something which has affected you please could you take ten minutes to complete the questionnaire?

Download the questionnaire

When you have finished please return it to our office.

Helpline

We realise this is a very difficult subject. If you would like to talk to someone about your experiences, please phone our free and confidential helpline on 0808080 10 10 11. Our helpline is run by trained volunteers who can signpost you to relevant services or will listen if you just need to talk.

Learn more about the helpline

This is great news as it means that as many family members as possible will have the opportunity to meet one another, hear our speakers and learn from the workshops.

We’re looking forward to meeting all those who have booked a place and trust you will have an enjoyable and worthwhile day with us. Please do remember to arrive for 9.30am to register for your workshops of choice.

Maximum capacity

Space in the main conference room and in the workshops is limited and we have reached maximum capacity. Therefore we are sad to say that we will have to turn away anyone who turns up in Dundee without having booked their place.

If you were planning to come but have not returned a booking form, we are sorry but you will have to wait for next year, when we hope our conference will be bigger and better than ever.