Alcohol services reaching 'crisis point', report warns

Only 12 per cent of health professionals linked to the sector 'felt resources were sufficient', the study found

Around 595,000 people in need of specialist support for a dependency on alcohol (iStock)

Services for people struggling with alcohol dependency have reached “crisis” point, according to a new study.

A lack of sufficient investment and not enough staff left many health professionals concerned about the state of the sector, the report found, adding that it “cannot survive” without additional funding.

Only 12 per cent of the 154 health professionals surveyed by recently merged Alcohol Concern and Alcohol Research UK felt that resources in their area were sufficient.

More than half of respondents (59 per cent) felt the situation had become worse over the past three years, with residential rehabilitation facilities hit the hardest.

Cuts to services of between 10 per cent and 58 per cent were also reported.

The study, which will be launched on Tuesday at the All Party Parliamentary Group on Alcohol Harm said: "Substance use treatment services in England are, it appears, facing a crisis."

"The challenges facing alcohol treatment services are numerous and, in many cases, acute.

"They are, undoubtedly, a consequence of funding cuts which have gone beyond what a functioning system can sustain if the goal is the meaningful reduction of harm to individuals, families and communities.

"Alcohol services cannot survive at their current level of funding."

In England, there are around 595,000 people in need of specialist support for dependency on alcohol.

Around 108,000 people receive treatment, according to a study by the University of Sheffield in 2017.

It is thought approximately 200,000 children are cared for by someone with a drinking problem.

The report calls on the government to develop a national strategy for tackling alcoholism, "plug the gap in treatment funding" and order a national review into staffing problems.

Dr Richard Piper, CEO of the new charity formed by the merger of Alcohol Concern nd Alcohol Research UK, urged those in charge to act now.

She said: "Around 595,000 people in the UK are dependent on alcohol. It's clear that the government must develop a national alcohol strategy to address the harm they and their families face, and include treatment at its heart to reduce the suffering of the four in every five who currently do not access the services they need.

"This report shows very clearly what action is needed and we urge policy-makers, practitioners and service providers to join together to implement these recommendations to help the hundreds of thousands of people who are in desperate need of support."

Press Association contributed to this report.