Drug and alcohol workforce: learning directory
Learning opportunities for those working with people affected by substance use.
Providing Harm Reduction Advice
Alcohol and Cancer Risks: A Guide for Health Professionals (2025)
Updated version of SHAAP brochure ‘Alcohol and Cancer Risks: A Guide for Health Professionals.
Provider: Scottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems
Cost: Free
Find out more: Alcohol & Cancer Risks: A guide for health professionals (2025) - Scottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems
Alcohol and Older Adults
This 3-hour interactive workshop will help you support wellbeing among older adults, by increasing your understanding and knowledge of the impact that alcohol-related harm has on older individuals, others around them, and wider society.
Provider: Alcohol Focus Scotland
Cost: Please contact provider
Find out more: Alcohol and older adults | Alcohol Focus Scotland
Alcohol Awareness
This 3-hour interactive workshop is aimed at anyone seeking to better understand alcohol, its impact, and ways in which people can provide basic support and signposting to services when working with people affected by alcohol use.
Provider: Alcohol Focus Scotland
Cost: Please contact provider
Find out more: Alcohol awareness | Alcohol Focus Scotland
Alcohol: Health
Provides a range of resources which discuss the health impacts of alcohol.
Provider: DrugWise
Cost: Free
Find out more: Health
Alcohol: Prevalence
Provides a range of resources from across the world on alcohol prevalence.
Provider: DrugWise
Cost: Free
Find out more: Prevalence
Alcohol Treatment and Recovery
Provides a range of resources outlining the impact of treatment and recovery strategies and services for alcohol.
Provider: DrugWise
Cost: Free
Find out more: Health
Bacterial Infections and Drug Use
This e-learning course will help you to recognise the signs of a bacterial infection and understand harm reduction techniques related to bacterial infections.
Provider: Scottish Drugs Forum
Cost: Free
Find out more: Bacterial Infections and Drug Use (e-Learning) – SDF Learning Centre
Cocaine Awareness
This e-learning course will explain how cocaine affects the brain, explore the different forms, effects and risks of cocaine, and offer information to support someone who is using cocaine.
Provider: Scottish Drugs Forum
Cost: Free
Find out more: Cocaine and other Psychostimulants
Core Knowledge and Key Practice Skills for The Provision of Effective Help to People Who Use Drugs
This foundation course is designed to communicate the core knowledge and key practice skills required by people who want to be able to provide effective help to people who use drugs. It includes a free certificated assessment to confirm your knowledge and competence.
Provider: Exchange Supplies
Cost: Free
Find out more: Exchange Training
Developing Mental Health Resources (MAT 6, 9 and 10)
These modules provide an overview of the major co-occurring disorders, prevalence and evidence-based interventions, with a focus on integrated approaches for working with both together.
Provider: NHS Education for Scotland
Cost: Free
Find out more: Developing mental health resources (MAT 6, 9 and 10)
Developing Physical Health Resources (MAT 6, 9 and 10)
Provides information and signposts to resources that outline how workers can protect the physical health of service users. It is essential to consider co-occurring physical health concerns which increase risk of harm and death.
Provider: NHS Education for Scotland
Cost: Free
Find out more: Developing physical health resources (MAT 6, 9 and 10)
Drugs: Bloodborne Viruses
Provides a range of resources outlining the prevalence of and approaches to address bloodborne viruses.
Provider: DrugWise
Cost: Free
Find out more: Blood borne viruses
Drugs: Harm Reduction
Provides a range of resources discussing the prevalence and impact of different harm reduction services.
Provider: DrugWise
Cost: Free
Find out more: Harm reduction
Drugs: Health
Provides a range of resources which discuss the health impacts of drug use.
Provider: DrugWise
Cost: Free
Find out more: Health
Drugs: Prevalence
Provides a range of resources from across the world on drug prevalence.
Provider: DrugWise
Cost: Free
Find out more: Prevalence
Drugs and Bugs – An Introduction to Outbreaks of Bacterial Infection
This course provides an overview of bacterial infection and various outbreaks, exploring harm reducing information relevant to bacterial infections.
Provider: Scottish Drugs Forum
Cost: Please contact provider
Find out more: Drugs and Bugs – An Introduction to Bacterial Infection Outbreaks – SDF Learning Centre
Drug-Specific Training (i.e. cocaine, cannabis, MDMA, benzodiazepines, etc)
These sessions focus on a specific drug: the legislation, risk factors, side effects, harm reduction and support services available.
Provider: Crew
Cost: Please contact provider
Find out more: Training (crew.scot)
Drugs: Treatment and Recovery
Provides a range of resources outlining the impact of treatment and recovery strategies and services.
Provider: DrugWise
Cost: Free
Find out more: Treatment and recovery
Drug Trends and Harm Reduction Training
This course discusses the key trends within local areas, national trends, and drug effects, and harm reduction strategies.
Provider: Crew
Cost: Please contact provider
Find out more: Training (crew.scot)
Enhanced Alcohol Awareness
This full-day course offers a more in depth look at the alcohol awareness course ran by Alcohol Focus Scotland. The training will enhance any existing basic knowledge on alcohol and its harm as well as update skills. You will consider examples of good communication with others and where to signpost people affected by alcohol for help and support.
Provider: Alcohol Focus Scotland
Cost: Please contact provider
Find out more: Enhanced alcohol awareness | Alcohol Focus Scotland
Exploring the Delivery of Alcohol-related Health Advice in Dental Practice Settings: A Scoping Review
This is a video resource outlining the role dentists can play in delivering Alcohol Brief Intervnetions.
Provider: Scottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems
Cost: Free
Find out more: Exploring the delivery of alcohol-related health advice in dental practice settings: A scoping review - Scottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems
Facilitating Disclosures of Selling or Exchanging Sex
This course aims to increase workers’ skills and confidence in managing disclosures of selling or exchanging sex. It explores barriers and motivators to women’s disclosures and outlines key considerations for support providers.
Provider: CSE Aware
Cost: Free
Find out more: Training - CSE AWARE
Giving Naloxone
This free e-learning provides vital information on when and how to administer different kinds of Naloxone. It includes a free assessment to confirm your knowledge and competence.
Provider: Exchange Supplies
Cost: Free
Find out more: Exchange Training
Harm Reduction for Festivals and Night-Time Venues
This training focuses on the demands of nightlife services including drugs (including alcohol) side effects and harm reduction, sexual health, de-escalation, spiking and drug related emergencies.
Provider: Crew
Cost: Please contact provider
Find out more: Training (crew.scot)
Hepatitis B in Scotland
This e-learning course is designed to help you understand hepatitis B. It allows learners to be able to define hepatitis B, describe acute and chronic hepatitis B, summarise who is at risk and identify who should get tested.
Provider: Scottish Drugs Forum
Cost: Free
Find out more: Hepatitis B in Scotland (e-Learning) – SDF Learning Centre
Principles of Harm Reduction
This introductory course will support an awareness of the main drug related harms and understanding of the principles of harm reduction.
Provider: Scottish Drugs Forum
Cost: Please contact provider
Find out more: Principles of Harm Reduction – SDF Learning Centre
Managing Alcohol and Drugs in The Workplace
This interactive, 3-hour workshop will ensure that managers have the essential skills, knowledge, and confidence to recognise and address alcohol and other drug related issues in the workplace.
Provider: Alcohol Focus Scotland
Cost: Please contact provider
Find out more: Managing alcohol and drugs in the workplace | Alcohol Focus Scotland
Needle and Syringe Programme Practitioner Training
This certificated training will allow you to build the skills and knowledge needed to deliver effective needle exchange services at all levels. It includes a free certificated assessment.
Provider: Exchange Supplies
Cost: Free
Find out more: Exchange Training
Naloxone (1 Hour)
This is training on the opioid antagonist naloxone, that reverses an overdose whilst seeking further assistance. This training provides information on how to reduce drug related deaths. The training includes information on current drug trends, adulterants and how to administer naloxone (nasal and injectable*). *If over 16 years old.
Provider: Crew
Cost: Please contact provider
Find out more: Training (crew.scot)
Overdose Awareness and Naloxone
Helps services, organisations or community groups learn the signs and symptoms of overdose and learn how to administer naloxone. It will also help you to understand drug use in the context of drug-related deaths in Scotland.
Provider: Scottish Families Affected by Alcohol and Drugs
Cost: Free
Find out more: Overdose Awareness and Naloxone - SFAD
Overdose Prevention, Intervention and Naloxone
This e-learning course explains what naloxone is, how it works, and how you can administer it to respond to an overdose. The course will show you how to identify an overdose, and how to respond to an overdose to potentially save a life.
Provider: Scottish Drugs Forum
Cost: Free
Find out more: Overdose Prevention, Intervention, and Naloxone (e-Learning) – SDF Learning Centre
Cannabis Awareness
This e-learning course will give you an understanding of the different ways cannabis can be consumed, and the reasons that people use this drug. It will also provide you with an overview of the physical and mental effects of using cannabis, any associated impacts and risks of using this drug, as well as suggestions for how to reduce the risks.
Provider: Scottish Drugs Forum
Cost: Free
Find out more: Cannabis Awareness (e-Learning) – SDF Learning Centre
Drug-Specific Awareness Training (Alcohol, Cocaine, Ketamine, Benzodiazepines etc.)
These facilitator-led courses will increase awareness about specific substances, help learners identify the reasons why people use the substance, and offer potential support strategies and harm reduction advice for each substance.
Provider: Scottish Drugs Forum
Cost: Please contact provider
Find out more: Training – SDF Learning Centre
Bitesize e-Learning Courses (Nitazenes, Harm Reduction, Ketamine, MDMA, Methamphetamine)
These short e-learning courses provide a quick overview of a topic, such as nitazenes, or a specific substance, providing information about potential risks, and practical advice about how to reduce harms. is designed to help you understand the risks nitazenes may cause, and how to be prepared to manage these risks.
Provider: Scottish Drugs Forum
Cost: Please contact provider
Find out more: Bitesize – SDF Learning Centre
Psychosocial Interventions for Relapse Prevention and Recovery (MAT 6, 9 and 10)
Provides an overview of structured psychosocial and psychological interventions that are important for those working with people using substances and resources for knowledge and skills development
Provider: NHS Education for Scotland
Cost: Free
Find out more: Psychosocial interventions for relapse prevention and recovery (MAT 6, 9 and 10)
Reducing Alcohol and Other Drug Related Deaths (MAT 4, 6, 8, 9 and 10)
Provides an overview of some of the strategies used to reduce deaths from substances in Scotland and signposts to other helpful resources. This includes details on risk reduction, alcohol brief interventions and suicide prevention.
Provider: NHS Education for Scotland
Cost: Free
Find out more: Reducing alcohol and other drug related deaths (MAT 4, 6, 8, 9 and 10)
Safety strategies for women who sell or exchange sex
An online training session for frontline practitioners exploring the issues of risk, harm and safety related to the lives of women selling and exchanging sex and considers the safety strategies that women might use substances.
Provider: CSE Aware
Cost: Free
Find out more: Training - CSE AWARE
Staying Alive: Preventing Drug Related Deaths
This course will discuss how services and practitioners can better prevent drug related deaths. This course will enable workers to recognise risk factors, high risk times and support people to reduce risk of drug related death.
Provider Scottish Drugs Forum
Cost: Please contact provider
Find out more: Staying Alive: Preventing Drug Related Deaths – SDF Learning Centre