Public Health England (PHE) has made capital funding of £6 million available to local authorities to improve services and facilities for individuals with alcohol dependency issues. The funding has been awarded to 23 projects across the country.
Several projects are focused on improving the quality and availability of services for people sleeping rough. Lancashire will provide dedicated treatment spaces in Preston, Lancaster and East Lancashire, and Oxfordshire will develop a dedicated alcohol centre within the ‘Oxford Homeless Hub’ as well as a clinical space in the Salvation Army Homelessness Hub to help boost more successful interventions. Portsmouth, Derby, Nottingham and South Gloucestershire will provide additional beds for those sleeping rough in need of alcohol treatment.
Improving car for parents with alcohol dependency are also being prioritised. In Newcastle, an existing family centre will be re-developed and co-located with a Barnardo’s family support team to improve integrated care.
In Croydon, the funding will be used to build an alcohol assessment centre at a new family centre to target vulnerable families, and in Wolverhampton, the existing alcohol services building will be redeveloped into a multiple-agency families hub that can act as a ‘home from home’ for vulnerable families.
Birmingham will establish new accessible alcohol support services in the heart of communities and Stoke-on-Trent will introduce new points of access, such as breakfast clubs, in community venues and hospitals with the aim of treating 1000 people by 2021.
Seven projects will be using the grant to purchase FibroScan machines to allow for rapid identification of those with existing liver disease. and provide additional motivation for patients to engage with treatment services.
