Substance Misuse (Drug and Alcohol) strategy

The Kent Drug and Alcohol Strategy for 2023 to 2028 is overseen by the Kent Substance Misuse Alliance. This is a partnership of key stakeholders who work together to tackle alcohol and drug related harms and is chaired by a county councillor. The strategy is held to account by the Senior Executive Group (chaired by the Director of Public Health) and includes senior representatives from key partners in Kent.

All the priorities in the Kent Drug and Alcohol strategy are taken from local needs and stakeholder’s views and are also aligned to the National Drug Strategy: “From Harm to Hope”.

The Kent Substance Misuse Alliance reports to both the Kent and Medway Health and Wellbeing Board and the Kent Community Safety Partnership and the Integrated Care Strategy’s Prevention and Health Inequalities work streams. This is important because of the:

• wide-reaching nature of substance misuse’s harms to health and wellbeing
• importance of tackling supply, crime and the needs of carers and people with lived experience.

The new strategy takes a whole-system public health approach. This means a strong partnership is required to bring together all the relevant organisations and key individuals to:

• share a vision of solutions to this challenge
• consider how the local system is operating and where there are the greatest opportunities for change.

There are 13 strategic priorities grouped under three areas:

• Prevention
• Treatment and recovery
• Community safety.