Derbyshire County Council notes rise in youth drug treatment

Derbyshire County Council has recognised an increase in the number of children being supported by commissioned specialist treatment services for drug misuse after a BBC investigation.

The BBC’s Shared Data Unit analysis of National Drug Monitoring Service statistics has also highlighted overstretched community support services and a lack of residential rehabilitation facilities nationwide for the youngest victims of substance misuse.

It has outlined the problems faced by councils and the Government as experts and coroners call for a more ‘cross-government’ approach with a national framework to address issues due to what they claim are varying disparities in treatment, over-stretched community support services, and the lack of residential facilities for under-18s in England and the UK.

Derbyshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Health and Communities, Cllr Dawn Abbott, said: “Like other areas, Derbyshire has seen an increase in the numbers of children being supported by commissioned specialist treatment services. However, this figure was impacted by the pandemic, when there were challenges in identifying young people due to restrictions in place at the time.
“Since 2021, we’ve received grants alongside all local authorities to fund treatment and recovery services and have used this to fund treatment, recovery and harm-reduction services, employ additional staff to reduce case loads and increase access to services for both adults and children. We have no waiting lists for anyone in Derbyshire needing support.”

The BBC’s analysis of NDMS statistics revealed there were 16,212 under-18s, aged 17 and younger, in drug treatment in England last year between April 2024 and March, 2025, which it says is an increase of 13per cent from 2023-24. Statistics from across England in the study recorded Derbyshire as having 145 youngsters aged under-18 who accessed drug and alcohol treatment in 2024-25 placing the county in the top third out of 151 council areas in a list of the numbers of under-18s accessing drug and alcohol treatment during 2024-25.

Despite a reduction for Derbyshire with the study’s 2023-24 figures revealing the county had 180 youngsters aged under-18 in treatment in 2023-24, Cllr Abbott acknowledged Derbyshire has seen an increase in the numbers of children being supported by commissioned specialist treatment services.

The Children’s Commissioner, the Local Government Association, charities and rehab workers have expressed that more needs to be done concerning treatment, recovery and prevention and the need to implement a national framework for the treatment of children and young people with drug and alcohol problems. Coroners have also identified what they claim is a lack of specialist residential care for under-18s and they have urged the Government, the NHS and local authorities to take action to prevent further deaths.

Experts, according to the BBC research, claim the number of children and young people receiving help for addiction is rising but too many of them are having to navigate inconsistent support routes that differ according to where youngsters live and these are influenced by local decision-making.
Lengthy waiting lists, funding issues, gaps in national guidance, inefficient collaboration between services, poor data and evidence gathering, and a lack of effective early intervention and prevention strategies are among barriers to quality care, according to the range of experts interviewed by the BBC.

It is understood the responsibility for the majority of under-18s needing treatment falls heavily on councils to fund and co-ordinate, according to the study, but it says approaches vary and residential options are limited and costly because there are no state-run specialist facilities for under-18s in the UK and only a handful of available beds at private facilities.

The LGA has also called on the Government to increase public health grants to make quality treatment more accessible.

Derbyshire council explained it is using targeted support and preventative measures with youngsters and it is working with secondary schools and it plans to expand support into primary schools and it has welcomed longer-term Govt funding settlements to allow for better planning. Cllr Abbott claims that in Derbyshire the majority of cases relate to cannabis and alcohol use and they can be supported in community-based commissioned treatment services instead of residential settings but she says residential services for complex cases are available through state, charitable and the private sector and even though demand is low access can be limited. She said:

“Working alongside young people we have designed targeted-support for children who have lower-level needs around alcohol and drugs, or who are on the edge of services and, as part of our prevention work, we work with five to 18-year-olds affected by someone else’s drug use and we also have the Coriell Award programme available to Derbyshire secondary schools – and which is due to be expanded into primary schools – which gives young people the knowledge and skills to make informed decisions about alcohol and drugs.

“We welcome the three-year ring-fenced [Government funding] settlement for alcohol and drug treatment, harm-reduction, support and recovery services from 2026-27 as it enables us to focus on longer-term planning for everyone in Derbyshire needing support around alcohol and drugs.
“In relation to the availability of residential services, most under 18s – where the majority of cases relate to cannabis and alcohol use – don’t require residential treatment and can be supported successfully within community-based commissioned treatment services, making it less disruptive to their lives and building support around where they live.

“Although residential services for more complex cases are available through state, charitable and the private sector, demand for this type of support for children and young people is low so access to it can sometimes be limited with providers struggling to balance what can be a dramatic swing between waiting lists and empty beds at different times.”

Derbyshire was recorded in the BBC study as being just inside the top 35 council areas out of 151 in England with the highest numbers of Under-18s accessing drug and alcohol treatment in 2024-25 with some of these councils sharing the same numbers. Essex was recorded with 435, Birmingham with 420 and Liverpool with 345 as the top three with the highest number of U-18s accessing drug and alcohol treatment in 2024-25 in England.

The lowest out of all the 151 council areas in England were Bracknell Forest with 20, Hartlepool with 15, Rutland five, and Cumberland with five.
Youngsters in Derbyshire also revealed in the study the substances with which they have a problem with cannabis identified as the most used, followed by alcohol with smaller numbers using cocaine, ecstasy, ketamine and lastly solvents.

Derbyshire also recorded 11 school exclusions at state-run secondary schools linked to drugs or alcohol during 2023-24 which is the equivalent of three per cent of all its school exclusions during the same period, according to the study.

The study revealed Derbyshire had 261 suspensions at state-run secondary schools and two suspensions at state-run primary schools linked to drugs or alcohol in 2023-24 which combined is the equivalent of one percent of all its school suspensions in the same period. It also recorded no exclusions at state-run primary schools linked to drugs or alcohol in 2023-24 and no exclusions or suspensions at state-run special schools during the same period.

The East Midlands region, which includes Derbyshire, was recorded as having the lowest number of under-18s in treatment in the BBC study at 1,100 out of nine areas, including England, measuring the highest regional rates of under-18s in treatment in 2024-25. England recorded 16,212 and the highest recorded English region in the country was the North West with 3,105 in the study’s regional chart for the highest rate of under-18s in treatment in 2024-25.

Experts fear a ‘postcode lottery’ of teen drug treatment is putting youngsters’ lives at risk with concerns about the disparities in treatment across England and the UK.

The BBC study claims that changes in drug trends and availability – including a stark rise in ketamine use and easy access to online dealers – are among factors contributing to a rising number of school-age children needing specialist help to overcome addiction.

Government independent drug adviser Dame Carol Black and other experts claim significant disparities in treatment and a lack of residential facilities for under-18s mean some are not receiving the quality of care they need. Dame Black said improvements were made in light of her 2020 independent review of drugs, which made recommendations around treatment, recovery and prevention. But she added work is still needed especially around the development of a strong national framework for the treatment of children and young people with a ‘very worrying increase’ in mental health problems among youngsters and easier access to online dealers among factors contributing to a rise in under-18s in drug treatment. She said:

“The Government is very aware that services are not equal across the country and is working hard to address the disparities. We need the highest possible quality of treatment, delivered in a way that is accessible and acceptable to young people. Addiction is a chronic health condition and it needs more than a medical intervention to help treat it.”

Dame Black added that adequate in-patient facilities should be available for young people with complex needs but they need to be considered very carefully so that education and connection to family needs are not unnecessarily disrupted.

Recent coroners’ reports also flagged the lack of specialist residential care for under-18s and they urged the Government, NHS and local authorities to take action to prevent future deaths.

The Children’s Commissioner, the LGA, charities and rehab workers are also calling for a ‘cross-government’ approach to tackle problems at the earliest possible stage. Children’s Commissioner Rachel de Souza said: “Children should never be denied health care because of where they live. I’m deeply concerned that too many children face this kind of postcode lottery in accessing specialist support for dealing with drugs and addiction.
“They have told me about long waits for all kinds of healthcare causing their conditions to deteriorate, leaving young people frustrated and anxious not knowing when help will be given.

“No matter the issue, children and young people must be able to access the treatment they need close to home, to help them recover quickly and rebuild stability in their lives with support from their loved ones.

“I want to see a cross-government approach to children’s health and well-being which addresses the wider and social factors that too often determine children’s health and happiness, with prevention and early intervention at its heart, so we reduce the need for emergency treatment.”

Experts also claim too many are having to navigate inconsistent support routes that differ according to where they live, influenced by local decision-making. The study states that the majority of under-18s needing treatment – which is the responsibility of councils to fund and coordinate – will access support in the community but approaches can differ significantly depending on the authority.

Most young drug users will not require residential treatment, but for the complex cases options for this type of care are limited and costly, according to the study. Nick Dunkley, operations manager at Oxfordshire’s Banbury Lodge rehabilitation centre, claims there are no state-run specialist residential facilities for under-18s in the UK and just a handful of beds available at private facilities where ‘demand is outstripping supply’.

Mr Dunkley said councils often only refer to specialist in-patient facilities when all other possibilities have been exhausted, meaning some youngsters are turned away as they have already become ‘too unwell’ to engage with the treatment available. He says there should be better access to state-funded and regulated residential care at a regional level with detoxification where needed, counselling and other therapeutic interventions in a safe setting.

Mr Dunkley said: “There’s a need for publicly funded, clinically commissioned places – relying solely on private provision is not a sustainable public health model, it limits equity of access and pushes costs onto vulnerable families or stretched local authorities.”
He added: “The public treatment system should be able to fund the placement of young people in safe facilities without forcing families to travel hundreds of miles away.”

Mr Dunkley said the NHS and local authorities should jointly commission in-patient capacity at a regional level with funding protection to ensure decision-making is ‘clinical, not financial’. He added changes in drug trends, particularly a rise in ketamine use among under-18s, is contributing to the growing need for specialist residential beds for teenagers.

Dr Will Haydock, Chief Executive of treatment and recovery charity Collective Voice, said a model of residential care tailored specifically for young people, providing treatment alongside support in areas like education and life-skills could also help some to overcome addiction. He added: “If we don’t get prevention and treatment right for younger people, we are potentially storing up problems for later in life, which will affect them, their families and the communities around them.

“We need national leadership to make sure this is a priority for all areas, to make sure we have a consistent offer and people can access support no matter what area of the country they’re in, but that also needs investment.”

Drug support service WithYou is also calling for more regulated residential facilities for youngsters to combat issues arising from changing drug trends, such as a greater need for medical support for those with ketamine addictions. Grace Willsher, WithYou regional head, said:

“I’d like to see a health and social care approach to substance use with young people, less of a criminal approach and more opening up conversation, making sure they feel safe enough to ask questions and get advice.

“I want to be able to continue the early intervention and prevention work we do, going into schools, training professionals and building links with medical professionals like GPs and urology departments.

“If I could wave a magic wand, it would be to bring about so many beds for the detox pathway, with the understanding that the journey a young person goes on to go into detox can be twisty and turny and may go off on a tangent.”

Ms Willsher believes a ‘zero tolerance’ approach to substance misuse from many schools is also among the barriers to young people accessing timely treatment. She said: “A lot of schools have a ‘just say no’ approach of zero tolerance, so if a young person was found to have cannabis on them, they would immediately be excluded rather than have someone sit down with them and try to understand what’s going on. Young people might not want to come forward in school to say they need help due to that fear of being permanently excluded.”

Dr Wendy Taylor, of the LGA, said the landscape was ‘very difficult’ for councils trying to provide the right treatment within ‘serious budget stresses’ as she called on the Government to increase public health grants to make quality treatment more accessible.

Fiona Spargo-Mabbs, CEO and founder of The Daniel Spargo-Mabbs Foundation, said: “It is concerning that the BBC’s statistics show that there are more children in treatment for drug misuse, and vital that such services are available so those who need them are able to access them, no matter where they live. This rise highlights the urgent need to invest seriously in prevention nationally, and in evidence-based approaches, including drug education for every child, relevant for their age and stage.”

A spokesperson for the Government’s Department for Health and Social Care said it is committed to ensuring those with drug and alcohol problems can access the help and support they need.

The spokesperson added the Government’s 10 Year Health Plan is helping to shift focus from ‘sickness to prevention’ and that treatment and recovery funding will be channelled through the Public Health Grant from 2026, with ‘over £13bn allocated across three years, including £3.4 billion ring-fenced for drug and alcohol treatment and recovery’.