Phoenix’s National Specialist Family Service in England is one of only two residential treatment services in England that enable parents to benefit from residential drug and alcohol treatment whilst caring for their children.
Both Phoenix’s service, and the similar service run by Trevi, Jasmine Mothers Recovery are long established with a track record for enabling families to stay together safely in treatment and to maintain care of their children safely in the long term.
Phoenix latest Social Return on Investment (SROI) report finds that by helping families stay together safely these services help make huge savings for the state, up to £23.5 million over the last 3 years alone. The service creates savings for the NHS, Local Authorities and the Criminal Justice system.
“In a period of time when NHS and Local Authority funds are stretched it clearly makes sense to invest in safe and effective interventions that save money for the state” Karen Biggs, Phoenix Chief Executive
Treatment completion rates for these services are excellent at between 80% and 90%, and our 2013 SROI report found that 70% of families were still together after up to 4 years post treatment. The 2013 report and the update 2024 report show consistent and similar rates of return on investment.
Over and above the savings to the state identified in these report, services may be having an in impact on future generations by breaking the intergenerational transfer of trauma and addiction. Scientific studies confirm that alcohol and drug problems can be and often are transmitted across generations, supporting parents with addiction needs is an effective means of preventing harm to future generations.
What’s more there is significant need, the 2022/23 national drug treatment statistics show that 20% (26,924) of people starting treatment were living with children, either their own or someone else’s. A further 14% (18,853) were parents who were not living with their children.
But behind these statistics there are compelling life stories and Phoenix’s resident’s experiences have featured in a 2017 BBC documentary, the service has also hosted a visit from BBC Radio 5’s Adrian Chiles and you can read Connie and her daughter Ruby’s story in The Times here.
“The Scottish Government have recently funded a national specialist service for Scotland and we’re seeking to establish a more stable score of funding for our English service. Trevi and Phoenix have supported hundreds of families over the years and it’s imperative we can continue to do so for many more years to come.”
