National Mission on Drugs: annual report 2025 to 2026
Sets out the progress made between 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2026 by national government, local government and third sector partners towards reducing drug deaths and improving the lives of those impacted by drugs in Scotland.
8. Finance
8.1 Overview
The National Mission has been delivered both nationally and locally. To achieve this, the Scottish Government partners with, and supports, many organisations across public and third sectors. The National Mission was supported by an additional £250 million over the lifetime of the Parliament (up to March 2026). This finance section aims to provide transparency of the National Mission and wider Alcohol and Drugs policy funding, by setting out:
- where in the Scottish Government budget the funding derives;
- the routes by which it is spent – providing a breakdown of the main funding distribution channels and partners and;
- how our funding is broken down by theme.
8.2 Alcohol and drugs budgets
The 2025/26 Scottish Budget provided funding for alcohol and drugs from NHS Territorial Board baseline budgets as well as the dedicated Alcohol and Drugs budget and the National Mission on Drugs budget.[1] This was broken down as follows:
NHS Territorial Board baseline funding[2] refers to Territorial Health Boards budget allocations, for alcohol and drug services which can be spent in response to local need. In 2025/26, baseline funding totalled £78.9 million. This included £17 million funding commitment from the 2017 Programme for Government and £2 million legacy Agenda for Change uplift.
Alcohol and Drugs Policy funding is investment to improve the delivery of frontline care; the overarching aim of this funding is to reduce harms and avoidable deaths caused by substance use. In 2025/26, this totalled £23.4 million, including an additional £2.5 million uplift and core operational budget of SG Alcohol and Drugs Policy.
National Mission on Drugs funding totalling £60m includes the additional £50 milion which the former First Minister committed in January 2021 to deliver the National Mission on drugs, totalling £250 million over the duration of the parliament and commitment for delivering the Cross Government Plan.
Graphic text below:
National Mission Funding - 60,000
Alcohol and Drugs Policy - 23,388
NHS baseline - 78,934
| Funding Source 2025/26 | Funding (£000s) |
|---|---|
| NHS baseline | 78,934 |
| Alcohol and Drugs Policy | 23,388 |
| National Mission Funding | 60,000 |
| Total | 162,322 |
8.3 Funding Distribution
Table 2 below provides a breakdown of funding allocated in 2025/26.
| Funding Allocated | Funding (£000s) | % Funding |
|---|---|---|
| Health Board baseline | 78,934 | 49% |
| Agenda for Change | 3,004 | 2% |
| Additional ADP funding | 33,300 | 21% |
| Grants via Corra | 13,500 | 8% |
| SG Managed | 29,413 | 18% |
| Key Third Sector Partners (KTSP) | 4,171 | 3% |
| Total | 162,322 |
Graphic text below:
- Health Board baseline - 49%
- Agenda for Change - 2%
- Additional ADP funding - 21%
- Grants via Corra - 8%
- SG Managed - 18%
- Key Third Sector Partners (KTSP) - 3%
71% of all funding is delivered via Alcohol and Drug Partnerships (ADPs). This includes the baseline funding (49% of total) and funding which is provided for specific funding streams as part of the delivery of priorities (Figure 3).
8.3.1 Key Third Sector Partners (KTSP)
Key Third Sector Partners (KTSPs) received a total of £5.5 million for both core funding and specific project delivery including funding through the Whole Family Wellbeing Fund as well as the Alcohol and Drugs Policy Budget (see Table 3 and associated footnotes). KTSPs include:
- Crew Scotland
- Scottish Drugs Forum
- Scottish Recovery Consortium
- Scottish Families Affected by Alcohol and Drugs
- With You
| Key Third Sector Partner | Core Funding (£000’s) | Additional Funding (£000’s) | Cross Government | Total (£000’s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew Scotland | 130 | 130 | ||
| Scottish Drugs Forum | 853 | 733 | 479 | 2,033 |
| Scottish Recovery Consortium | 630 | 328 | 958 | |
| Scottish Families Affected by Alcohol and Drugs | 168 | 594 | 1,337[3] | 2,099 |
| With You | 255 | 255 | ||
| Total | 2,036 | 1,656 | 1,816 | 5,508 |
8.3.2 Corra Foundation
The Corra Foundation is responsible for distributing funding to grassroots and third sector organisations through a suite of dedicated funds. This accounts for 8 percent (£13.5 million) of the total budget. Funding was available by open application for third sector and grassroots funds. Details of the projects and funding awarded can be found on Corra’s website.
| Fund Name | Funding allocated (£000s) | Activities supported |
|---|---|---|
| Improvement Fund | 5,000 | To provide improved services for outreach, treatment, rehabilitation and after care. £3 million was ring-fenced for Residential Rehabilitation. |
| Local Support Fund | 5,000 | To provide access to funding for a wide range of communities and grassroots organisations which support the aims of the National Mission. |
| Children and Families Fund | 3,000 | To improve support for children, young people and families impacted by drug use, and ensure all children, young people and families have access to services. |
| Continuation Funding | 500 | Additional funding made available to support continuation of projects to organisations where total funding was less than five years and funding would end before the Alcohol and Drugs successor fund launched in summer 2026. |
8.3.3 Scottish Government-managed funds
SG managed funds are funds that were directly administered by the Scottish Government. This includes funding for the following areas of work:
Residential Rehabilitation Rapid Capacity Programme (RRRCP) provided capital funding to increase available capacity, alongside assistance with entering services, and ongoing recovery support following discharge. Funding in 2025/26 was £10.626 million.
The Cross Government action plan includes a broad range of initiatives which will not only support the complex needs of people who use drugs but also help support prevention and early intervention. Total funding available in 2025/26 was £6.34 million.
The Scottish Government’s Alcohol & Drugs Support Division also commissioned services from national bodies, academic partners and other third sector organisations, and directly funded a range of targeted programmes in line with National Mission priorities. This included investment in treatment improvement and service transformation, naloxone provision, public health surveillance, evaluation, monitoring and research capacity, digital inclusion, and improvements to alcohol and drug support within justice settings.
8.4 Funding breakdown by source and theme
A breakdown of 2025/26 funding allocations by theme and funding source is provided in Table 5.
| 2025/26 Budget | Funding Theme | Funding (£000’s) |
|---|---|---|
| National Mission Commitments | Children & Families | 6,500 |
| Residential Rehabilitation | 18,626 | |
| Lived and Living Experience | 1,000 | |
| MAT standards | 10,300 | |
| Surveillance | 453 | |
| Local and national initiatives | 18,500 | |
| Cross-Government Action Plan Commitments | Cross Government[4] | 6,340 |
| National Mission Total | 61,719 | |
| Drugs Policy Commitments | Drugs Policy delivery[5] | 13,897 |
| Operational costs | 3,518 | |
| Drugs Policy Total | 17,415 | |
| ADP baseline | ADP baseline | 78,934 |
| Agenda for Change | Agenda for Change[6] | 3,004 |
| Alcohol Policy Commitments | Alcohol Budget | 1,250 |
| Total | 162,322 |
Contact
Email: alcoholanddrugsplan@gov.scot