Drug and drink abuse costs Lincolnshire £264m a year

About 11,000 people in the county are being treated for substance abuse, a council report said

Drink and drug abuse in Lincolnshire costs services in the county £264m a year, a council report says.

The cost is incurred by health services, social care, prison, law enforcement and emergency services.

County councillors discussed the issue at a meeting about plans for substance misuse treatment and recovery services.

The leader of the council, Trevor Young, told the meeting: "It feels like a tsunami is going to hit us eventually, it is a major problem."

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, he compared the situation to the mental health crisis a decade ago, expressing frustration over the difficulty in signposting people to services around substance misuse.

"The fact it's discreet is an issue. It should be out there openly," he added.

The council is proposing two new contracts to tackle the problem.

One is for a countywide integrated treatment and recovery service that includes drug and alcohol treatment for adults and young people.

The second contract is for a separate specialist support service for families, children and young people.

The county council is proposing spending more than £5m on substance abuse services

The report also revealed that 3.7% of children in Lincolnshire live with an adult who misuses substances, leading to a higher likelihood of these children entering the criminal justice system and of experiencing poor health.

About 7,000 people are currently being treated for alcohol misuse, while just under 4,000 are being treated for opiates and crack cocaine.

The committee heard for every £1 spent on substance misuse treatment, £4 was saved.

This could mean that the £5,437,652 budget the council puts aside for the contracts will create an estimated £21,750,608 return on investment.

The new contracts are set to commence from April 2024.