Extent of substance use

The following are a selection of statistics and data that indicate the approximate scale of substance use among the main groups of service users working with social workers. As with much data on this subject, accurate figures are difficult to find due to the obvious unwillingness of people to disclose their use of illicit substances and, in some cases, people’s shameful feelings about their substance use:

• Current research suggests that between one third to one half of people with mental illness have increased rates of substance misuse (DoH 2002, Rethink and Turning Point 2004)

• Older men and women are: more likely to drink every day than younger people; less likely to know about alcohol units. In addition, older men drink more spirits as a percentage of their overall consumption than younger men (Lader and Goddard 2004)
• The most common misuse of substances by older people is the mixing of alcohol and benzodiazepines.
• However, there are currently no UK statistics available on illicit drug use among older people – even British Crime Survey data stops at age 59!
• It is clear from American evidence and anecdotal evidence that older people do use, and have problems with, illicit substances and that this is likely to increase with the ageing population of ‘baby boomers’.

• Social work child care teams estimate that for 50% to 90% of parents on their caseload, substance use is a factor
• The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs estimated that 2-3% of children under 16 in England and Wales have one or both parents with serious drug problems (ACMD 2003)
• Estimates of the number of children currently living with an alcohol misusing parent range from 300,000 to 2.5 million (Cabinet Office 2004, Cleaver et al. 1999, Tunnard 2002)

• 11-15 yr olds: 18% had taken drugs in last year, 11% in the last month; 24% had drunk alcohol in the last week (DoH 2003)
  16-24 yr olds: 28% had used at least one illicit drug in last year (Condon and Smith 2003)
• 16-19 year olds more likely to have used glue than older age groups;
• 0-24 year olds more likely to have used all other substances thanother age groups (Condon and Smith 2003)

Young offenders

• Very high levels of lifetime substance use have been reported by young offenders (Hammersley et al. 2003, Goulden & Sondhi, 2001 in Drugscope 2003). This varies according to substance but alcohol, cannabis and tobacco are the substances used most by young offenders (Hammersley et al. 2003).
• A higher proportion of young offenders aged 12-17 drink frequently in relation to non offenders (36% vs 20% respectively) (Harrington 2000)
• 40% of young offenders in one study felt their offending and substance use was related. However, few people in this study were assessed as being drug ‘dependent’ (Hammersley et al. 2003).

Offenders

• One UK study showed 69% of arrestees tested positive for one or more illicit drug while 36% tested positive for 2 or more drugs; 38% tested positive for opiates and/or cocaine (Bennett and Holloway 2004)
• 60% of arrestees saw a link between their substance use and offending (Bennett and Holloway 2004)
• 15% of detainees – alcohol specific offences; for 16% alcohol was a factor prior to arrest (Man et al. 2002)

Learning difficulties

• There is very little research available on substance use by people with learning difficulties. Research has found evidence of alcohol and drug use among young people with LDs but this is at lower levels to young people without LDs. (SNADE website 2003) (http://www.educari.com/SNADE/)
• As yet this is an under explored area of research and practice

Physical disabilities

• There appears to be no British research looking at the co-existence of physical disabilities and substance use.
• According to the US research, alcohol and drug problems are much higher among people with disabilities and that any alcohol and drug problems that existed prior to a disability tend to worsen.

Domestic violence

• BCS (2003): 45% of “assailants” had been drinking at the time of the assault; 17% had been using drugs. NB. This is based on victim reports of perpetrator substance use only.
• Victims of domestic violence have higher levels of alcohol and drug use and this vulnerability to victimisation increases with increasing levels of substance use (Mirrlees-Black 1999)
• Research consistently shows that 60-80% of women in substance use treatment have experienced lifetime domestic violence or abuse.