Services for children of parents who abuse drugs and alcohol have improved

The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs has found that services for children of substance abusing parents have improved since 2003.

The Advisory Council said today that its Hidden Harm report in 2003 had led to greater acknowledgement of the problems faced by children of parents who abuse drugs and alcohol and increased action by agencies, leading to improvements in their lives.

But in a review of Hidden Harm, it said good practice was not being implemented consistently across the UK and there was a significant problem securing long-term funding to support children.

It also said large-scale training was required to equip mainstream children¹s and adults¹ services to respond to children’s needs.

Essential information on substance misuse