- Project ADDER has supported nearly 3,000 organised crime group disruptions in England & Wales
- Includes seizure of almost £10 million in cash and over 25,000 arrests in two years
- Over 7,000 doses of Naloxone - medication to prevent drug overdose deaths - distributed
- Drug treatment for nearly 5,000 people in affected areas
New figures reveal that since launching two years ago, Project ADDER has supported thousands of disruptions against criminal gangs selling drugs in England and Wales and helped thousands of people into drug treatment.
Project ADDER (Addiction, Diversion, Disruption, Enforcement and Recovery), which recently reached its two-year anniversary, is a programme designed to address drug addiction and tackle supply in the hardest hit local authority areas across England and Wales.
Coordinated police action helps tackle the supply of drugs in the worst affected neighbourhoods. Forces aggressively act on intelligence to disrupt the flow of drugs, while working with partners at a local level to divert vulnerable people into treatment and help them recover from their addiction.
The programme has supported the police make 2,729 interventions against organised criminal gangs, strangling county lines networks which feed the flow of drugs and dislodging criminal operations – maintained through intimidation, violence and exploitation of local people – which dealers seek to profit from.
Officers have seized £9.8 million of cash, made 25,953 arrests and pursued 3,808 drug trafficking and 2,757 weapon possession charge against the individuals behind these ruthless, criminal operations.
£59 million of central government funding supports each Project ADDER foster partnerships between local councils, the police and charities to identify and encourage people in the community into treatment. Once there, drug users can receive therapy and drug rehabilitation.
4,966 people in treatment for drug-use have also benefitted from Project ADDER, while 7,672 Naloxone kits, which reverses the effects of potentially fatal opioid overdoses, have been distributed to keep users safe outside of treatment services.
There have also been 9,208 Out of Court Disposal orders issued for drug possession offences in Project ADDER areas since the programme began, guiding vulnerable people exploited by gangs away from the criminal justice system and towards holistic treatment.
Project ADDER is a pathfinder for the government’s 10-year Drug Strategy, from Harm to Hope, which is rolling out a bold new approach to reducing drug related harm nationally.
Published in December 2021, the strategy sets out our ambition to significantly increase the capacity of treatment and recovery services in England and Wales. This includes £780 million for drug treatment and recovery – the largest ever single investment which will see 54,500 people receive high quality treatment for addiction in England. We expect this investment to reduce neighbourhood crime like theft which funds drug users’ addiction, leading to 750,000 fewer crimes by the end of 2024/25.
Art, creative writing and community work also has a role in providing those recovering with new purpose. Instead of falling back into addiction, crime or prison, local projects provide those recovering with stability to build a life away from drugs, through training, finding employment and permanent housing.
Detective Chief Inspector Sean Lyons, Central East BCU said:
“Over the last 24 months, through Project ADDER the Metropolitan Police has embedded a new approach to tackling drug supply and associated exploitation, violence, and harm it generates.
“The real legacy is the strength of the partnership across the MET, local authority, and health, which will now fall under the Combating Drugs Partnerships as part of the Harm to Hope 10 year drugs strategy.
“The mantra is simple, the enforcement will focus on drugs supply, leaving and creating a clear space for diversion and treatment for those involved in drugs misuse, drug related deaths, crime and associated violence.”
Cllr Abu Talha Chowdhury, Cabinet Member for Safer Communities at Tower Hamlets Council, said:
“Project ADDER funding has strengthened our partnership approach to delivering a range of targeted interventions to vulnerable members of our community and helped to divert residents into effective drug treatment and recovery services.
“Investment has supported us to deliver a trauma-informed and culturally sensitive service to victims of violence and drug related harms, and locally we are seeing positive impacts on the lives of individuals and their families.
“Working closely with police, health services, and community organisations has been key to the success of ADDER in Tower Hamlets, which has been improved further through the Combatting Drugs Partnership. It has led to 37 per cent more residents engaging with treatment after leaving prison and an increase in those aged 18 to 24 receiving employability training and entering sustained employment.”
In Project ADDER funded areas since July 2021 the Metropolitan Police have:
- Conducted 1028 disruptions against organised crime groups.
- Made 1905 arrests for drug trafficking.
- Seized £4,113,548 in cash.
Posted on Friday 16th June 2023