New figures reveal that since launching two years ago, a police project tackling drug addiction and supply has helped disrupt thousands of criminal gangs in England and Wales.

Project ADDER (Addiction, Diversion, Disruption, Enforcement and Recovery), which recently reached its two-year anniversary, is a programme designed to address drug addiction and tackle supply in the hardest hit areas across England and Wales.

Coordinated police action has seen resources concentrated on some of the worst affected neighbourhoods with forces aggressively acting on intelligence.

The programme has supported 2,749 organised criminal group disruptions, £9.8 million of cash seizures and 25,953 arrests of people involved in the illegal drug trade.

The government has provided the police with £59 million of funding, assisting forces to deliver 3,808 drug trafficking and 2,757 weapons possession charges.

There have also been 9,208 out of court disposal orders issued for drug possession offences in ADDER areas since the programme began, guiding vulnerable people exploited by gangs away from the criminal justice system and towards holistic treatment.

Combatting drugs Minister, Chris Philp, said: “These results show Project ADDER is having an impact.

"Funding from the Home Office is being used in the hardest hit local authorities to remove gangs who do not care for the substances in the drugs they are selling which can have fatal consequences.

“Ridding streets of dangerous drugs is only one part of Project ADDER. Vulnerable people are supported by tailored programmes to coax them away from addictive substances.

"Every circumstance is different but under Project ADDER more people in these local authorities are getting the support they need, which is so important.”

Over the past two years, Project ADDER has supported areas afflicted by drugs, balancing strong action against dealers and gangs with innovative treatments for drug users to find support.

Around 4,966 people in drug treatment have benefitted from Project ADDER, while 7,672 Naloxone kits, which reverses the effects of potentially fatal opioid overdoses, have been distributed to keep users safe outside of treatment services.

Health Minister, Neil O’Brien, said: “Our trail-blazing response to combatting drug-use is working, and I’m pleased to see the data shows communities are safer thanks to a combination of tough law enforcement and more treatment and recovery services.

“However, we must not lose momentum. Our 10-year drug strategy is driving up drug treatment and we are investing £532 million to tackle addiction.

"By the end of the parliament, local authority funding for treatment will have grown by 40 per cent compared to 2020”.

Project ADDER fosters partnerships between local councils, the police and charities to identify and encourage people in the community into treatment. Once there, drug users can receive therapy and drug rehabilitation.

Here is a case study from Blackpool:

David (not his real name) had recently been evicted from recovery housing after a relapse into  lass A drug use and was rough sleeping. He was at high risk of drug-related death because of low tolerance, with significant wound care issues and often injecting alone.

Project ADDER staff and the Lived Experience Team (LET) used the ADDER outreach model to engage David in harm reduction discussions and facilitated rapid access to pharmacological treatment.

David was offered a co-ordinated, multi-agency package of care including access to therapy, physical health care and housing. Over the next six months, David became abstinent from illicit substances, gained a place in supported accommodation, accessed inpatient detox and residential rehab, followed by abstinence based recovery housing.

David remains drug free and maintains contact with Project ADDER staff to keep them updated on his recovery journey – in David’s own word to his Project ADDER key worker: “I couldn’t have got here without your support, probably saved my life, so yeah, so so grateful.”

Detective Superintendent Becky Smith of Lancashire Police said: “Early intervention is key in fully understanding the root causes of issues faced by vulnerable people and being able to put the right support in place to prevent escalation.

“We have been extremely fortunate to benefit from the funding around Project ADDER which has enabled us to identify those most at risk and put in place individual support plans through the expertise of our lived experience teams to divert them away from a life of drugs and criminality.

“Working alongside our partners, the introduction of a dedicated enforcement team focussed on identifying those posing the most risk and robustly targeting them with the intention of removing them from the streets of Blackpool, sends a strong message to those involved in organised crime and exploitation that their criminal activities will not be tolerated and that we will do whatever we can to bring them to justice and to make our communities safer.”

Art, creative writing and community work also has a role in providing those recovering with new purpose.

Instead of falling back into addiction, crime or prison, local projects provide those recovering with stability to build a life away from drugs, through training, finding employment and permanent housing.

In Project ADDER funded areas since July 2021 Blackpool Police has:

• Conducted 305 disruptions against organised crime groups

• Made 443 arrests

• Seized £360,942.60 in cash