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Tackling Drugs Changing Lives Nomination Criteria

Every day, people involved in the drugs field are changing lives. Their work with individual drug misuers, with families and across whole communities transform lives and improves the places where people live.

The Tackling Drugs Changing Lives Awards ensure that this life-changing work is recognised. Does someone you know deserve an award for the work that they do?

The awards aims to:

• personalise the tackling drugs agenda by recognising, rewarding and celebrating the achievements of the unsung hero who are changing lives everyday
• bring the range and diversity of local projects to life through stories of real people making a real difference in local communities
• generate local media coverage around the winners, demonstrating to local communities that action is being taken to tackle drugs in their area

Anyone can nominate a team or individual who work in drug field for an award - colleagues, family, community leaders, service users and ex-service. Nominees can work or volunteer within any sector of the drugs field, be that prevention, education, treatment or enforcement. Practitioners from both public and voluntary sectors are eligible, though all nominees must work for a recognised organisation.

This year there are six categories:

• Young people: a team or an individual who work in the young people sector to either divert young people away from drugs or support them if they become drug users
• Drugs and the Criminal Justice System: recognising that there a huge number of people and teams working across the criminal justice system to help and support drug using offenders, including Criminal Justice Integrated Teams, police, prisons, probation, Prolific and Priority Offender teams and treatment providers
• Community engagement: a team or an individual who works hard to encourage local partnerships to engage with their communities and address local concerns about drugs
• National Tackling Drugs Week: every year a staggering number of local agencies and police forces take part in National Tackling Drugs Week and this category recognises this work
• Drug Team of the Year: working in partnership, demonstrating commitment to their work, evidence of improving the lives of residents in the local community
• Drug Worker of the Year: individuals who have demonstrated how they have worked closely with clients and the local community

There will be five finalists in each of the categories and two overall national Tackling Drugs Changing Lives awards are available.

Each nomination must demonstrate how the nominees have made a difference. The winners will have changed the lives of the people with whom they have worked, made a major impact on the communities in which they work and demonstrated a commitment to their work that is inspirational.

All nominees must have been in their current position/role for one year or over on 8 June 2009. If you are nominating a team, the majority of the team must have been in their current position/role for one year or over on 8 June 2009. For example if it is a team of four or five, then three team members must have been in their role for one year or over, and if it is a team of six or seven, then five team members must have been in their role for one year or over on 8 June 2009.

What the judges are looking for

Judges are looking for those who have made a significant difference to the lives of their service user and/or people in their local community.

Nomination under each category must show:

• clear and specific evidence of the direct benefits of the nominees work to clients or communities - especially in the last 12 months
• how they have gone the extra mile to help people overcome the harms caused by drug-misuse, for example, do they visit drug misusers in the A & E departments, offer a tailoured service into treatment or provide support to families affected
• how the individual has improved the lives of local residents, for example by consulting with the local community, securing their involvement or providing reassurance
• do they work collaboratively across institutional borders to respond to local needs, focussing their efforts where impact will be greatest
• evidence of the individual's commitment to their role - not necessarily through length of service but in drive, enthusiasm ad care for those they work with
• evidence of contributions to reducing drug-related crime in the local area