Junkie parents are raising 200,000 children in UK

At least 200,000 children in the UK are being raised by parents addicted to heroin, cocaine and other hard drugs, according to new research.

At least 200,000 children in the UK are being raised by parents addicted to heroin, cocaine and other hard drugs, according to new research.

A report by the Centre for Drug Misuse Research, a Europe-wide institution based at Glasgow University, highlights growing fears that a large part of a whole generation of children will be seriously damaged – emotionally and physically – because of the drug habits of adults.

The report, "Paying the Price for Their Parents' Addiction", concludes that the current, preferred policy of trying to support children within addict families "carries considerable risks that the children's own lives will be ruined and in some cases lost as a result of their parents' drug use".

It urges the creation of safe havens to give children, who, the report concedes, cannot all be put into social services care, at least some respite "from the chaos of their parents' drug use".

The report added: "Parental drug use was associated with material deprivation on the part of these children, many of whom were living in homes that had been made desolate... Left alone these children are becoming casualties of their parents' drug use and we need to begin to recognise the price they are paying and give much more attention to meeting their needs."

Professor Neil McKeganey, who carried out the research, estimated at least 200,000 children are living with parents addicted to hard drugs. He suggested the figure was a conservative one. He said: "We have never tried to examine the circumstances of these children before.

"These children are at a very high risk of becoming the addicts of tomorrow. They are exposed to very serious neglect, even leading to death.

"It is a huge problem and if you asked what services do we have in place to meet the needs of these children, the answer is very, very few and nowhere near enough to meet the needs of these children living with drug-dependent parents."