News & events
Back to Drug Interventions Programme (DIP) E-bulletinsDIP E-bulletin - April 2009
Welcome to the April 2009 edition of the monthly e-bulletin for the Drug Interventions Programme.
Appointment of new permanent Programme Director for DIP
Sally Richards, acting Director of the Drug Interventions Programme since the departure of Peter Wheelhouse last year, has been appointed to the position on a permanent basis.
Sally went through a competitive selection process in March to be chosen as Head of the Offender-based Interventions Unit at the Home Office, which includes directorship of both DIP and the Prolific and other Priority Offender (PPO) Programme.
New families factsheet
The latest addition to the DIP factsheet set is about support for the families of drug-misusing offenders.
The factsheet, Meeting family needs at arrest and after release, explains how the Drug Interventions Programme is working with a range of partners to support the families of drug misusers.
It is recognised that families play an important role in helping their relatives address drug misuse and offending but also that families can face particular stress and difficulties, especially during the arrest process and after release from prison.
The factsheet will be of interest to a wide range of stakeholders concerned with retaining DIP clients in treatment and with finding long-term solutions as part of a resettlement and rehabilitation package.
National Tackling Drugs Week
National Tackling Drugs Week will run from 8 to 12 June. This week of action, led by the Home Office, is designed to provide local agencies and police forces with a platform to publicise the work being done to tackle drugs and reduce drug-related crime and to highlight the significant efforts that are being made to keep our communities safe.
Local agencies and police forces around the country are being encouraged to take part. Activities could range from high profile and visible police enforcement activity to smaller events to highlight the work being done.
A National Tackling Drugs Week handbook has been created to support those who would like to take part in the week and is now available via the Home Office Drugs website, which also includes other ideas and suggestions of how to get involved.
National DIP and PPO conference planned for June
Planning is underway for a joint DIP and PPO national conference in the summer. It will take place on 18 and 19 June at the ICC in Birmingham.
Details of the agenda are still being finalised but it is known that the format spans two days, with workshops looking at core issues and areas, which are expected to include topics from IOM to information sharing and stakeholder management.
Attendance will be by invitation and a list of invitees is currently being drawn up.
Link to latest Key Messages
The document setting out the Key Messages for DIP is undergoing a re-vamp to make it a more useful tool to help explain the programme and its benefits to local communities.
The document, which will go online in the next week or two, still provides a ‘core script’ to describe the various elements of the programme and the key points that should be understood about them. In the meantime, the most recent version of Key Messages can still be accessed.
However, the document has previously featured messages for delivery partners. Now that the benefits of the programme can be evidenced and should be more widely recognised as a success, it has been agreed the document should be more community-facing. So, from the April edition onwards, it will set out the overarching messages that the central DIP team and everyone involved in delivering the programme can promote with citizens.
This can be a useful resource when preparing community presentations, news releases, reports, briefings and other publications about DIP and it is reviewed and updated every two months.
