It’s finally being widely recognised that women’s treatment needs and experiences are different to men’s. But we still have more challenges to overcome. 

Over 20 years ago, I worked in a community prescribing service in Tottenham. A woman in our service often arrived with black eyes or a swollen lip. She was homeless, part of a wider street drinking community.

An amazing nurse joined our team and worked with her completely on her terms—seeing her whenever she made it in, giving her as much or as little time as she wanted, no set appointments, no punishment for missed doses. Eventually, she entered rehab and, against the odds, stayed. In those days six months’ funding was the minimum, so she was there nearly a year. I still remember our delight when she returned to thank her key worker, almost unrecognisable from the woman we had known.

Looking back, we were oblivious to her trauma, and to what it meant to navigate life as a woman in the drug-using community. Her vulnerability was not abstract—it was the daily reality of male violence. We saw the chaos of her life but not her survival. Over time I’ve learned that once you start to view women’s lives through that lens, you can’t unsee it.

Our treatment system is slowly changing. We now talk more about women’s needs—not to diminish men’s, but to recognise that applying a generic model has failed women. 

In Time Held Gently we wanted to understand women’s residential rehab journeys. We spoke to women in rehab, women who had completed, staff and professionals.

We heard how 12 weeks’ funding is rarely enough: it takes time to land, to build trust, and most don’t dare “open the box” knowing they’ll be leaving weeks later. Women spoke of juggling caring responsibilities, trying to secure contact with children while navigating rehab. It was striking that we don’t collect data on mothers without parental responsibility, overlooking their needs.

We also heard how women are asked to write to funders and encouraged to share their trauma in order to justify their funding. Practices like this “letter to panel” felt like trauma being judged. People who have experienced the struggle to access rehab are those best placed to suggest the changes that could make the experience more supportive. But we also heard stories of hope and connection—a reminder that residential rehab, often overlooked, offers people the chance of a new start. For those in addiction, who can feel out of reach, yet rehab makes it possible.

We hope that this report will help us to keep generating conversation and keep us working towards a system that better meets women’s needs.

Read the full report here

Join us on 19th September 2025 From 1:00- 2:30pm 

A free webinar examining how women’s needs can be better met through specialist residential provision.

The webinar will look at the report’s findings and examine potential steps that can be taken to improve outcomes.

Click here to find out more and register your place