Read our latest blog from Participation, Engagement and Policy Advisor, Julia Swann, who explains how a new project aims to empower children and young people living in secure care to research, access and lead their recovery from substance misuse, supported by youth led grant making.
On Tuesday 10th March, the Scottish Government and COSLA published their joint strategy for alcohol and drugs. ‘Preventing Harm, Promoting Recovery: Scotland’s Alcohol & Drugs Strategic Plan’ outlines Scotland’s approach to substance use and related harm from now until 2035. The Plan brings together the core aims of preventing harm, promoting recovery, and saving lives.
In addition to the often devastating impact on individuals and families, the societal impact of drug and alcohol-related harm is deep and far reaching, with clear links to demands on physical and psychological health care, community safety, and the collective wellbeing of communities across the country. The impact that this has on children and young people is particularly complex, especially for those with first-hand experience of substance use.
The Plan builds on a wealth of previous and existing frameworks and recommendations, including the Scottish Government’s Standards for Young People Accessing Treatment or Support for Alcohol and Drugs. Published in 2025, these Standards address the unique challenges and barriers that children and young people under 25 face when seeking help or support for their own alcohol or drug use.
I personally know these barriers all too well. As a child, I began using alcohol to help me cope with multiple traumatic experiences and undiagnosed neurodivergent conditions. My own drinking quickly became harmful and regularly led me into dangerous situations which compounded my trauma and brought me into conflict with the law. Despite seeking help for this, I was repeatedly told that there were no services available to help me, and was even told by professionals that they ‘didn’t believe’ how much I was drinking. By the age of 22, I had already tried many times (unsuccessfully) to stop drinking by simply isolating myself from other people. In the ten years that I had been drinking I had also experienced informal school exclusion, loss of friends, and serious violence. I had also caused harm to many people around me.
Thanks to a very understanding GP who saw beyond my age and background, I was able to receive treatment through my local authority who then referred me to a third-sector community rehabilitation programme. The support I got there was literally life-saving and helped me begin a completely new path into adulthood that I didn’t think was possible.
This year I will celebrate ten years of sobriety – the same length of time that I spent relying on alcohol.
The publication of the Strategic Plan comes at a time when I am embarking on a new project in my role of Participation, Engagement and Policy Advisor at CYCJ. One of the key priorities outlined in the Plan is ‘supporting the health development of children and young people’. Within this priority is a commitment to support ‘the development of age and stage appropriate alcohol and drug education and prevention resources’. Whilst this is a bold and much-welcomed commitment it is crucial that children who are deprived of their liberty are included in this, have equal access to such resources, and can be supported to develop resources that relate to their unique circumstances and needs. In December, CYCJ was awarded a grant from Corra Foundation’s ‘You’re Only Young Once Fund’, a participatory funding project in which children and young people impacted by substance use choose which projects they want to see come to life. Thanks to their faith in what was being offered, I am now able to carry out a youth-led project in direct response to what children in secure care have shared with me. Throughout my regular work in secure care centres, I often hear of a lack of support for substance use. Children frequently share with me that they can see how substance use has influenced their mental health, personal safety, and contact with justice systems. What they also see is a lack of alternatives, nowhere to receive judgement-free advice, and limited access to formal support or treatment.
Understandably, this hits a nerve with me as it mirrors my own experience so clearly. However, I also know that everyone’s experience is unique and not everyone will want or need the same support that I eventually received. Much like the areas outlined in the Strategic Plan, there must be a range of approaches covering prevention, harm reduction, treatment, and support. CYCJ’s new project ‘Learning About Substance Use’ aims to provide children in secure care with the advice, resources, and support they need to carry out their own research into what is needed before and during secure care to help children who are impacted by substance use. ‘Learning About Substance Use’ will take place throughout 2026, and work towards influencing changes to policy and practice in secure care and beyond. Ultimately, I hope that this will give children the opportunity to share their views and experiences in a non-biased, non-judgemental space, whilst also learning valuable skills in research and critical thinking.
On both a personal and professional level (though there isn’t much divide between these for me!), I feel incredibly proud and honoured to be able to embark on this new journey which has lived experience at all levels. It is made possible through participatory funding, developed and carried out by children, and facilitated by someone who has experienced the issue first-hand. I’m approaching the rest of 2026 with so much hope for positive change, and I look forward to seeing that same hope grow amongst the children that saw the need for better support and understanding.
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