Tendring Community Assets Full Final Report

45 indicate that there is a significantly higher level of classified drug use of all types in Tendring. In 2015, there were 16 drug-related deaths in Tendring. 48 Population age 15-64 OCU Opiate users Crack users Injecting Tendring 78,058 377 323 241 89 North East Essex 195,958 947 812 606 224 % of NEE population 16% 40% 40% 40% 40% Estimated Prevalence of Drug Use in North East Essex per 1,000 population aged 15-64 (2011/12 estimates) 11.6.4 A report for the Home Office in January 2016 stated that “Though research suggests that not all OCUs resort to acquisitive crime to help finance their drug use, numerous studies show that a proportion consistently do and these individuals can be extremely prolific offenders (Morgan, 2014). One study by Frontier Economics estimated that the average lifetime cost to society of an injecting drug user was £445,000 from crime alone. Hence analysing and identifying new OCUs is a policy priority (Frontier Economics, 2010)”. 49 It is estimated that the annual cost of drug addiction to society in England is £15.4bn. This includes £488m to the NHS and £42.5m for looking after drug using parents’ children who have been taken into care. Alcohol-related healthcare costs in NHS North East Essex CCG were an estimated £15.6m, equating to £56 per adult. This breaks down to a cost of £3.8m for A&E attendances, £10.1m for in-patient admissions and £1.6m for outpatient admissions. 11.6.5 There is no data available relating to the costs of drug use at Local Authority or CCG level, but these figures indicated that supporting people with drug and alcohol addictions into recovery should remain a priority for Tendring in order to promote health & wellbeing, enhance community safety and remove pressure on the NHS and social care. 11.6.6 The likelihood of secondary school age children having ever taken drugs increases with age, from 11% of 11 year olds to 37% of 15 year olds. Cannabis is the most widely used illegal drug among children and young people, with 8% of secondary school pupils saying they took the drug in the last year, and 14% of 16 to 19 year olds. Use of Class A drugs such as heroin and cocaine is very uncommon. The most recent drug use survey includes new data on nitrous oxide and new psychoactive substances (NPS – ‘legal highs’): in the last year, only 4% of pupils said they had used nitrous oxide, and 2% used NPS. 50 11.6.7 For those of all ages with drug and/or alcohol problems there is help and support available. However, drug and alcohol awareness and counselling are always in demand. Open Road and The Children’s Society work in partnership to deliver Choices, the all age recovery coordination service, which includes Tendring. Essex Young People’s Drug and Alcohol Service (EYPDAS) is the children and young person’s element of the service. There is a Community Hidden Harm Awareness Team run by the Children’s Society supporting young people between 8 and 19 years of age who are affected by family substance misuse. 11.6.8 Action on Addiction delivers a structured programme called M-PACT (Moving Parents and Children Together) to address parental substance misuse for parents and children aged 10-17 years – these are available in various locations. Similarly the NSPCC has a 20 week programme for parents who have a child under 2 and a half and are on a drug or alcohol treatment related programme – these are held across Colchester and Tendring. 48 NE Essex CCG figures 49 New opiate and crack-cocaine users: characteristics and trends, Home office research report 90, Nick Morgan, Daniel Heap, Amy Elliott, Tim Millar, January 2016 50 https://mentoruk.org.uk/get-the-facts/