National Mission on Drugs: Annual Monitoring Report 2024-2025
This third annual monitoring report provides an analysis of the progress made between April 2024 and March 2025 on the National Mission to reduce drug deaths and improve lives.
9. Outcome 6: Children, families and communities affected by substance use are supported
9.1 Summary
Headline metrics
Percentage of ADP areas with agreed activities and priorities to implement the holistic Whole Family Approach Framework: 93% of ADP areas have an agreed set of activities and priorities to implement the Whole Family Approach Framework. in 2024/25. Increase since 2023/24.
Percentage of people who would be comfortable (a) living near, (b) working alongside, someone receiving support for drug use: No new data for this metric for 2024/25.
Commentary: Implementation of the Whole Family Approach is progressing. All ADP areas provide some support services for those affected by another person’s substance use but the extent and uptake of these services is unclear. There is no new evidence on public attitudes or the experiences of people with lived and living experience, families, and communities.
9.2 Background
Families and communities play a vital role in supporting people who use drugs. Families need dedicated support for both their own recovery and to help them support the recovery of their loved ones. The Whole Family Approach Framework aims to ensure consistent, holistic family support for children and adults, available when needed – not just at crisis point.[47] Parental drug use can have a traumatic impact on children and increase the risk that drug use becomes intergenerational,[48] while community attitudes can also play an important role in enabling and promoting recovery.
9.3 Headline metrics
9.3.1 Headline metric: Percentage of ADP areas with agreed activities and priorities to implement the holistic Whole Family Approach Framework
This metric evidences progress and activity at ADP level in implementing holistic support for children, young people, parents/carers, and wider family members affected by substance use. In 2024/25 more than nine in ten ADPs (93%) reported that they have an agreed set of activities and priorities with local partners to implement the holistic Whole Family Approach Framework in their ADP area. This is a continued increase from 77% of ADP areas in 2023/24, and 72% of ADP areas in 2022/23, the first year for which these data are available.[49]
These data are self-reported by ADP lead officers and do not provide insight into service uptake. Geographic distribution, and the number or range of settings within an ADP area providing the service are also not captured.
9.3.2 Headline metric: Percentage of people who would be comfortable (a) living near, (b) working alongside, someone receiving support for problem drug use
Trends in public attitude data provides insight into the social context surrounding people living with problem drug use. No new data is available to provide insight into progress for this metric for this 2024/25 monitoring report.
The most recent available data is from 2021/22 where three in ten people (30%) reported they would be comfortable living near someone getting help to stop using heroin. Almost six in ten people (59%) reported they would be ‘very comfortable’ or ‘fairly comfortable’ working with someone who was getting help to stop using heroin. This data is limited to public attitudes towards people using heroin and does not capture attitudes towards people using other drugs.[50]
9.4 Supporting metrics
9.4.1 Supporting metric: Percentage of ADP areas with support services for adults affected by another person’s substance use
The ADP annual survey offers insight into the provision of support services for adults affected by another person’s substance use. In the 2024/25 survey, all ADPs reported a range of support services in place for adults affected by another person’s substance use. Naloxone training was available in all ADP areas (up from 93% of ADPs in 2022/23 when this data was first collected and 97% in 2023/24). Most ADPs reported having advocacy services, support groups, commissioned services, and one to one support in place (small increases since 2022/23). The least commonly reported services for adults affected by another person’s substance use were training and counselling, both reported by around six in ten ADPs, broadly unchanged from 2022/23.[51]
These data are self-reported by ADP lead officers and do not provide insight into service uptake. Geographic distribution, and the number or range of settings within an ADP area providing the service are also not captured.
9.4.2 Supporting metric: Percentage of ADP areas with support services for children/young people affected by a parent’s or carer’s substance use
The ADP annual survey also offers insight into the provision of support services for children and young people affected by parent or carer’s substance use. In the 2024/25 survey, all ADPs reported that some form of treatment or support services for children and young people (under the age of 25 years) affected by a parent or carer’s substance use were available in their area in 2024/25. This is in line with previous years. The most commonly provided services were advocacy, family support services, and mental health services (in place in 90% of ADP areas for one or more age groups under 25 years).[52]
These data are self-reported by ADP lead officers and do not provide insight into service uptake. Geographic distribution, and the number or range of settings within an ADP area providing the service are also not captured.
9.4.3 Supporting metric: Percentage of adults saying drug use or dealing is common in their neighbourhood
Data from the Scottish Household Survey capture adults’ perceptions of drug use and dealing in their local communities, helping to understand the social environment surrounding people living with problem drug use.
No new data is available to provide insight into progress for this metric for this 2024/25 monitoring report. The most recent available data is from 2023 when 16% of people reported that ‘drug misuse or dealing’ was either very common or fairly common in their neighbourhood. This was a small increase on previous years (2022: 15%, 2021: 13%).[53]
9.4.4 Supporting metric: Number of new Child Protection Register registrations with an identified parental substance use concern
This metric provides insight into the scale of assessed harm or risk of harm to children associated with parental substance use. There were 2,132 new registrations onto the Child Protection Register during 2024 where parental drug misuse or parental substance misuse was identified as a concern at the Case Conference. This is 49 (2%) fewer than in 2023, when there were 2,181 such new registrations and a decrease of 19% (492) since the start of the National Mission in 2021. This follows a downward trend that has been observed since 2019. Note that multiple concerns can be recorded per registration, and figures may be affected by changes in processes. The data only cover cases that reach Child Protection Register registration following investigation.[54]