Blenheim
Annual Report
2015/16
Message from
the Chair of
the Board of
Trustees
W
e live in uncertain times. There is anxiety
around Brexit. Daily we hear that the NHS is
under intolerable pressure and its future is at risk.
On top of this government funds seem more and
more scarce.
Vision
To end drug and alcohol dependency and
related harm by enabling people to change.
Blenheim is a charity
that provides support to
drug and alcohol users,
their families, friends
and carers. We support
people to make lasting
changes to their lives.
We believe in people’s
capacity to change.
2 Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16
Values
We are committed to change, quality,
honesty, innovation and integrity.
Drug and alcohol use is what people do,
not who they are.
We challenge myths and stereotypes
surrounding drug and alcohol use.
We provide opportunities to develop
through support and learning.
We advocate that the opportunity to
change is a right, not a privilege.
In this environment, some people might feel that
drug and alcohol services are luxuries that society
can ill afford. On the contrary, now is exactly when
society needs drug and alcohol services most.
The people who use our services are in desperate
need and suffering from increasing levels of illhealth. One person being affected by drug and
alcohol use can have a dramatic knock-on effect
– including increased crime, deteriorating health,
and negative impacts on friends and family.
Now is the time as a society to address drug and
alcohol issues head on.
I am proud to be part of an organisation that
helps people, families and communities confront
drug and alcohol problems – often one person at
a time, making amazing changes to individual lives:
abstinence from drugs and alcohol, or significantly
reduced consumption; more stable housing; and,
for many, new employment opportunities. These
changes are often associated with improved
physical and psychological health, as well as
significant improvements in quality of life.
I feel privileged to be part of an organisation that
is prepared to argue for harm reduction policies,
supports an evidenced-based practice and
campaigns in the corridors of power to ensure
that people get the treatment that they need.
Now is the time
as a society to address
drug and alcohol issues
head on.
The last year has been challenging for our sector,
but Blenheim continues to develop and adapt
both as a service provider and a loud advocate for
the people who use our services.
We are delighted to have launched new
partnerships to deliver Arch in Hillingdon, the
Reintegration and Aftercare Lewisham (ReAL), and
the integrated R3 services in Redbridge – and we
have also opened a new Primary Care Recovery
Service (PCRS) in Lewisham. We are also excited to
have developed new partnerships with Club Soda
and the Octavia Foundation, to name but a few.
This is a time of change. Sadly, after 48 years of
working in Southwark, Blenheim is no longer
delivering adult drugs services in the area.
However, we continue to deliver a young people’s
service there, which is recognised as a centre of
good practice.
In the coming year Blenheim will enter an exciting
new partnership with Turning Point across London
and explore new ways of working as we restructure
for a brighter future.
Eric Feltin, Chair of the Board of Trustees
Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16 3
Blenheim in 2015/16
W
e provide free, friendly and non-judgemental advice,
support and treatment through a range of services
designed to meet the unique needs of all people affected by
drug and alcohol misuse. These include services such as openaccess, key work, criminal justice, day programmes, GP sharedcare, access to opiate substitute therapy (OST) prescribing, and
needle exchanges. We provide a range of integrated services,
specialist services for young people, families and friends, and
services that focus on aftercare, reintegration and access to
education, training and employment (ETE).
In 2015/2016,we provided
26
6
12
We provided
support to
12,314
people in 2015/16.
84%
of people
who were at risk of
eviction when they came
to Blenheim were no
longer facing this risk
when they left our
services
%
0
Over 5
services across
London boroughs, opening
new services.
95% of our
service users would
recommend Blenheim
to someone else
47%
of service
users using
alcohol were
abstinent
when they
completed
treatment
4 Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16
When asked,
97%
of Blen
heim service
users were happy
with the service
they received
that day
of service users using
opiates were abstinent or
had significantly improved
in their first six months
of treatment
Service users
who reported
offending
behaviour when
they started using
our services
reported a
92%
reduction when
they completed
treatment
36%
of people who
use our services reported
an improvement in their
quality of life when they
completed treatment
Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16 5
Spotlight on
our Services
Islington
CASA Alcohol Service
We provided a wide range of support for alcohol
users across Islington, including satellite services
and outreach with St Mungo’s. We worked with a
local GP to develop the community detox pathway,
forging the opportunity to deliver detoxes from our
base in CASA. Focusing on wellbeing, we introduced
complimentary therapies and a yoga group. We
achieved the best successful completions rate for
service users in the borough.
Bexley
Nexus
At Nexus, we offered a vast range of services and
open on several evenings and Saturdays, ensuring
that service users who are working, training or
in education are able to access our service. We
provided placements and induction training to all
new social workers, and delivered satellites with
local mental health services and Job Centre Plus.
Hammersmith & Fulham,
Kensington and Chelsea,
City of Westminster
Oasis
At Oasis, we provided an open access service
in Hammersmith & Fulham.
KC North Hub
We provided an integrated service in partnership
with Central and North West London NHS
Foundation Trust (CNWL) and Phoenix Futures.
We employed a Community Engagement Worker
to work with communities affected by the use of
khat, engaging service users who are traditionally
unlikely to access mainstream services, particularly
women, through proactive outreach and
grassroots community engagement. We also ran
an ETE service at K&C ETE.
Primary Care Support Service
We worked in partnership with GPs and primary
care staff across twenty-one surgeries. We built
stronger relationships with pharmacists to get a
better understanding of our service users’ local
support, and developed training for pharmacy and
GP Practice staff on drug and alcohol awareness
and working with alcohol misuse.
Read about our work with young people through
Insight K&C on the Spotlight on Young People
page.
We worked in partnership with Turning Point to
prepare to open the doors of the new Drug and
Alcohol Wellbeing Service on 1 April 2016.
6 Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16
Read our Spotlight on our Families and Friends
Services for information on CASA Families, Partners
and Friends Service and CASA Family Service
Lambeth
Haringey
The Grove
We worked in an integrated partnership with
Barnet, Enfield and Haringey Mental Health
Trust, offering a vast range of services, including
a criminal justice service, community care
assessments, an evening club drug clinic,
prescribing, a needle exchange and a range of
mental health support. This year, we developed
new groups, and began pairing the facilitator with
a psychologist.
Read about our work with young people in
Haringey at Insight Platform on the Spotlight on
our Young People Services page.
Harrow and Hillingdon
Directions
At Directions we provided a structured
two-phase day programme: the first phase
supported service users who are using drugs
and alcohol, and the second phase supported
service users who are abstinent.
Arch
In August 2015, in partnership with Central and
North West London NHS Foundation Trust
(CNWL), WDP, and Build on Belief, we opened a
new integrated service in Hillingdon. Blenheim
delivered recovery work, the group programme
and outreach, including events in the local
community. We engaged and re-engaged service
users with a focus on motivation and harm
minimisation.
Lorraine Hewitt House and Harbour
Recovery Centre
As part of the Lambeth Drug and Alcohol
Treatment Consortium, Blenheim continued to
work in a successful fully integrated partnership
with South London and Maudsley NHS
Foundation Trust (SLAM), Addaction and Phoenix
Futures.
Latch House
Latch House pairs Blenheim’s substance misuse
programme alongside Nacro’s hostel and
housing service, to support men wanting to
break the cycle of re-offending and substance
misuse. We responded to the changing profile
of substance use in Lambeth by developing our
group programme to include specific groups on
novel psychoactive substances, as well as recovery
capital.
Lewisham
Primary Care Recovery Service (PCRS)
We opened our doors and worked across eight
local GP surgeries, offering medication-assisted
treatment alongside psychosocial interventions.
We introduced naloxone distribution, and we
helped to increase access to detox by finalising
our ambulatory alcohol detoxification model. We
expanded our group programme to include a
mindfulness group to support our service users
dealing with anxiety and stress.
Redbridge
R3
In May, we launched R3, a one-stop integrated
drug and alcohol treatment service in partnership
with the NHS East London Foundation Trust
(ELFT) and QALB. We successfully established
ourselves within the local community and
provided a range of services – including a needle
exchange and a criminal justice service. We
started the exciting twelve-week R3 Abstinence
Based Day Programme for service users wanting
to build on their recovery, prevent relapse and
gain skills to move out of treatment. We have
a 100% completion rate for opiate users, and
are exceeding our completion targets for nonopiate and alcohol users. Read about our R3 ETE
service on the Spotlight on Education, Training,
Employment and Aftercare page.
Southwark
Rise
We restructured and expanded the twelve-week
structured day programme, creating options for
less stable service users to ‘pick and mix’ groups
as an induction to the course, as well as a aftercare
programme for abstinent service users.
Southwark Drug Intervention
Programme (DIP)
We continued to work successfully across multiple
sites in partnership with the police, probation,
courts, prison estates and hostels.
Kappa
We worked with eighteen GP surgeries to support
access to OST prescribing, alongside a range of
psychosocial interventions.
Evolve
Our open-access service provided an innovative
club drug clinic, and we developed a satellite
service on chemsex for gay and bisexual men at
the Lloyd STI Clinic at Guy’s hospital. This focused
on harm reduction advice, information and brief
interventions.
Read about our work with young people at Insight
Southwark on the Spotlight on Young People’s
Services page.
We also opened Reintegration and Aftercare
Lewisham (ReAL), which you can read about on
the Spotlight on Education, Training, Employment
and Aftercare page.
Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16 7
Spotlight on our
Young People’s Services
At our Insight services, we provide information, support and a range of
facilities to help young people discuss any issues and move forward with
their lives. In addition to this we offer advice and support to parents, and
training to professionals who engage with young people in the boroughs
that we work in.
In 2015/16, 3,632 people
accessed our Insight services.
I
n 2015/16, we offered young
people’s services in Haringey
(Insight Platform), Southwark
(Insight Southwark), Kensington and
Chelsea, Hammersmith & Fulham
and Westminster (Insight K&C).
A
t Insight Platform, we were awarded additional
funding from Haringey Council to work in
partnership with the Council and the Prince’s
Trust, as part of the Transformation Challenge
Award. In January, we launched a package of
seven substance misuse related programmes,
including group work with young people in
schools and youth groups around drug related
offences and anti-social behaviour; a citizenship
programme with teenagers to promote
sustainable communities; and engaging
teachers and other professionals to increase
their drug awareness.
A
t Insight K&C, we continued providing group
activities, including our weekly HOT Café,
alongside 1-2-1 support and groups to discuss
substance misuse, health, education and family
issues. We continued to provide our satellite
outreach services and hosted organisations such
as Working with Men, who are focused on getting
young people back into work. We developed
our relationship with the Latimer Academy Pupil
Referral Unit and we are now based there one
day a week, to work with the students around the
effects of cannabis, skunk and crime.
8 Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16
When I was referred to Insight
Platform I initially didn’t think it would
make a difference to my life. However, my
key worker was absolutely amazing, which
allowed me to let my guard down. From
the first session I was convinced that I
could make some positive changes. I still
have some low days like most people but I
now know how to control my triggers and
can live a normal life.
I work with young mums and
girls under the age of 24 who are
affected by substance misuse and
who may be involved with social
services, to help them build their
parenting skills and self-esteem.
We use node link mapping to
highlight their strengths and
goals. We also work on health and
wellbeing, nutrition and diet, and
practical skills like budgeting or
navigating public transport.
I’m so proud when I finish work
with a young woman, and they’re
abstinent and in training or
employment. Last week, a previous
service user came to visit. She has
a full time job and kids in nursery.
It’s amazing to see how she’s
turned her life around.
Sharon Thompson, Female
Engagement Worker at Insight
Southwark
‘I was sexually abused when I was 16. Following
that, my mental health suffered. I had depression
– I kept crying, felt guilty and isolated and I was
thinking about suicide. I started drinking alcohol
and using cannabis and it spiralled out of control.
I was studying for my degree, but my parents
asked me to move in with my uncle because of
how I behaved when I was drinking and taking
drugs. The day after my Mum had taken me
to A&E because I was suicidal, she took me to
Insight.
With my key worker, I had space to think about
how the alcohol and cannabis affected me. We
used an alcohol diary to work out my patterns
and triggers. She also helped me get linked in
with the community mental health team – and
even came to appointments with me. When I
told her I wasn’t comfortable at my uncle’s but
couldn’t move back in with my mum,
they helped me with the homeless
person’s application form.
It was amazing to have that support.
It made it all that bit easier. I’m now
in a female-only hostel and engaging
with all the right services. Insight
encouraged me to return to uni in
September 2016. I think I will.’
Service user from Insight K&C
Insight Platform Service User, aged 19
At Insight Southwark we began to work in
partnership with Brook Advisory to deliver
a satellite service for young women, and
continued our satellite service in the Kings
College sexual health clinic. We delivered
training on the impact of drugs on young
people for 50 professionals in Southwark. As
well as onsite activities, we are committed
to finding the best ways to engage young
people within the community, so we worked in
schools, pupil referral units, and in collaboration
with other organisations such as the Youth
Offending Service.
Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16 9
Spotlight on our Family
and Friends Services
Across London, we provide specialist services that focus
on supporting and safeguarding families, partners and
friends affected by substance misuse, including children.
In 2015/16, over 4,250 people accessed
our family and young people services.
C
ASA Families, Partners and Friends (Islington)
and Nexus (Bexley) directly support people
affected by other people’s drug and alcohol use.
Our CASA Family Service in Islington supports
families with children affected by parental substance
use, helping parents to provide a safer and more
secure environment for everyone in the family.
In addition, a significant part of our Insight (young
people) services in Kensington and Chelsea,
Hammersmith & Fulham, Westminster, Southwark
and Haringey is to work with parents, carers and
families to educate and raise awareness around
drugs, discuss how to talk to young people about
substances and support the family’s wellbeing
when they are affected by parental and sibling
substance misuse.
My 1-to-1 support and group sessions
with service users offer a space to talk things
through and provide a safe space to be
heard, de-stress, and process feelings such as
bereavement for lost loved ones.
As well as supporting the mental wellbeing
of families, healthy relationships are also
an important part of recovery. Families and
loved ones might need to make sense of the
way they can support the person who is using
drugs and/or alcohol, and find out more
about substance misuse.
In 2015/16:
Insight Platform launched the Transformation
Challenge Award (TCA) with Haringey Council
and the Prince’s Trust. As well as engaging young
people around substance misuse, our TCA
programmes focus on family work. Our parenting
workshops and 1-2-1 interventions raise parents’
awareness on the impact of substance misuse
on their families, and our work with children,
teachers and professionals on hidden harm
enhances safety and protection.
The work on Hidden Harm is
so important because it safeguards
children and ensures they aren’t
missed out of the recovery
process. We work with parents so
they can understand the effects
of their drug and alcohol use, and
run age-appropriate activities with
children – we aren’t here to judge,
but believe in everyone’s capacity
to change.
Chantelle Green, a Hidden Harm
Worker at Insight Platform
Teresa’s husband was always a regular drinker, but since
his redundancy he had been drinking more and more
problematically. He was becoming verbally abusive
and had tried to assault their adult son. Teresa was
becoming distressed and worried. She felt she must
being doing ‘something wrong’ and felt isolated. Her
life revolved almost entirely around trying to stop her
husband drinking.
When Teresa came to the service, the team
provided her with counselling and referred
her to organisations to support her with
the risk of domestic violence. Teresa also
participated in the support group, where she
felt heard and supported.
As a result of our work with Teresa, her mental
wellbeing has improved. She feels less isolated
and more self-confident.
CASA Family, Partners and Friends Service.
Names have been changed.
CASA Family Service provided support to 75
families affected by parental substance misuse,
through direct work, structured therapeutic
intervention and workshops with parents/
carers, children and families. Of the families
that passed the screening stage, 94% saw an
increase in protective parenting, 89% saw a
reduction in drug and alcohol related harm, and
86% saw a reduction in alcohol and drug use.
Before I was sad, unconfident,
can’t talk about problems. After I am
happier, confident, able to speak more,
I don’t feel alone
13 year old – feedback from the Family
Workshops at CASA Family Service
Kate Foy, Project Worker at the Family
& Friends Service at Nexus
10 Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16
Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16 11
Spotlight on Education,
Training and Employment
(ETE) and Aftercare
The ETE
service gave
me the tools
to get
employed.
– R3 ETE
service user.
At Blenheim, our ETE and aftercare services support people to access
opportunities within their community to further aid their recovery.
In 2015/16:
R3 ETE opened as part of our fully integrated
service in Redbridge. In our first year, we built
excellent relationships with the community,
recruiting 12 local employers, supporting 24
people into employment, and helping 48 people
to engage in education or training.
Wardrobe
R3 ETE’s Working
U
sing individual interventions and group
work, we help to build resilience and relapse
prevention, support people to move on and out
of treatment, and have a long-lasting positive
impact on people’s lives. We provide help and
advice around applications, interview skills and
in-work support.
This year, we offered specialist ETE services
in Redbridge (R3 ETE), Lewisham (ReAL) and
Kensington and Chelsea (K&C ETE) as well as ETE
support in many of our other services.
The Reintegration and Aftercare Lewisham
service (ReAL) opened its doors to provide access
to ETE opportunities, such as a confidencebuilding course, and a weekly IT course. ReAL
set up a Job Club to support service users with
job searches and CV building, and a fortnightly
reading group in partnership with ThamesReach.
ReAL also began an exciting collaboration with
the actor Donald Waugh, to host his creative
‘Pavement 2 Catwalk’ workshops. Our service
users work with Donald and with various materials
to create a new fashion piece each week.
At K&C ETE, we held a successful event for Adult
Learners Week, to recognise and celebrate
the achievements of our service users. Over
100 people attended this event, including
commissioners and ward councillors, volunteers,
service users and peer mentors. We provided 1-21 IT support delivered by our IT volunteer, worked
with Dyslexia Action to launch Units of Sound
literacy package, and supported service users by
initiating a new Universal Job Match Clinic.
In 2015/16, 407 people accessed
our ETE and aftercare services.
12 Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16
Learn2Earn
Working Wardrobe
In December, Blenheim and the Octavia Foundation
were awarded a grant from the Big Lottery Fund to
support people with a history of long-term drug
and alcohol dependency into education, training
and employment. In early 2016, Blenheim and the
Octavia Foundation began to design the bespoke
programme around the specific needs of people
in recovery, who are often long-term unemployed
and have little chance of achieving employment
through traditional job centre work programmes
that are designed on a more generic basis. The
twelve-week programme will support residents of
the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham,
the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, and
the City of Westminster through modules aimed to
improve service users’ confidence and self-esteem,
as well as their employability skills.
R3 ETE set up a Working Wardrobe to help service
users to feel at their best and most prepared
when they get their interview. The Working
Wardrobe can provide our aspiring professionals
with an outfit to help them feel confident for
their interview – alongside the other support they
receive at R3 ETE. We established a link with The
Xchange Redbridge shopping centre for a fashion
show and received donations from the public.
When a service user gets an interview, they’ve
already come so far in their recovery journey. They
can achieve anything and we don’t want them to
fall at the final hurdle – an extra confidence boost
can be life-changing.
‘I hadn’t been back to school or done any courses since the age of 13. When I was
in recovery, I came to the aftercare programme and then the ETE programme
at ReAL. I’ve always loved the idea of painting and decorating – and they
encouraged me to pursue it, gave me information, and referred me on to different
opportunities. I did the Moving In Moving On course with ThamesReach – to gain
new skills and also develop skills like confidence and team working. They said I was
the best student they’d ever had! I’m doing my Level 1 BTEC now and I have so many
goals. I want to complete a course with Women in Construction and eventually,
maybe I’ll have my own painting and decorating business. I want to show other
women who are interested in the industry that they can do it too.’
ReAL Service User
Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16 13
Spotlight on Service
User Involvement
In a photo project with R3 ETE service users, we
asked them to take photos of surroundings that
made them feel positive, hopeful and motivated.
We are committed to supporting service user involvement in our services,
and view peer mentoring and mutual aid as crucial aspects of people’s
recovery. Service user groups and peer led services can act as invaluable
support networks; they can also build skills, confidence and experience.
Peer mentors across Blenheim learn new skills,
increase their knowledge and confidence, and
work as part of a team – as well as having the
opportunity to help and support someone else.
Service user forums
Many of our services run forums and groups that
provide our service users with a space to have a
say about the running of their service. Some of our
service users have also represented their service
at borough-level and at Public Health England
forums.
At Nexus, a structured service user group was
introduced in January 2016 to give service users
a greater voice within the service. They have
voted members into key roles and have taken
the service forward by making changes to the
group programme.
At CASA Alcohol Service, the service user group
is well attended and have their own information
board in the open-access drop-in. Supported by
14 Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16
a volunteer, the representatives have organised
trips to the British Museum, a book group, curry
evenings, and have built a link with the Heritage
Trust in Islington.
At Evolve, the service user representatives and
peer mentors continued to have full ownership
of managing the Service User Sunday Café.
Peer mentoring
We believe that peer mentoring can be an
important part of recovery as personal experience
gives a unique understanding of the problems
that another service user may be facing.
The Blenheim Training Team worked closely
with six peer mentor coordinators to develop
a ten-week training package for peer mentors.
The training includes sessions on boundaries,
confidentiality, interpersonal and communication
skills and signposting, and is standardised across
the organisation.
Mutual Aid Groups
Blenheim continued its partnership with UK SMART
Recovery, who train volunteers in our services to
facilitate SMART Recovery groups. These service
users are trained, equipped and supported to run
their own meetings and support one another using
SMART’s evidence-based tools.
We support a number of service user groups that
provide a range of peer-led, weekend, social and
support services in our buildings. These groups
offer a valuable opportunity to socialise and
establish lasting support networks.
We have a long-term relationship with Build on
Belief, which provides recreational and social
support to service users.
We provide meeting spaces for AA, NA, CA, MA, and
other groups, as we believe that service users have the
right to choose which interventions are most useful
to them on their personal recovery journey.
‘It all feels very strange, coming out of
addiction - something you invested so much
effort into – it leaves a hole, and you have to
fill your time. That’s why I’ve been doing lots
of volunteering.
I’m a service user representative and chair
meetings for a borough-wide service user
group. I really enjoy it. We’ve got a solid base,
and it’s been good to see it get established
and build more and more of a rapport with
staff. It’s helped me meet people, try things
out and find out what I’m good at.
My service is participating in the Haringey
Time Credit scheme, supported by an
organisation called Spice. I get time credits
in return for volunteering in my community
and my service. I can use them for all sorts
of activities, like the cinema or Birmingham
Christmas market. We’re planning a picnic
and we’re trying to get tickets to a
football match.
Volunteering and socialising can
help people sustain their recovery.
I’ve met so many great people I’d
call my friends and the activities
and outings on the time credit
scheme help me feel connected
to people I can relate to. We’ve all
been through the same thing.’
Service User at The Grove
Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16 15
Volunteers
Thank you to our amazing volunteers: you
are vital to the work of Blenheim, making
a genuine difference to your communities
and helping people change their lives.
O
ur volunteers bring a vast range of skills
and experiences such as counselling,
complimentary therapies, art therapy and IT skills.
Others support open access, service-user groups
and perform administrative tasks.
o meet the needs of a diverse workforce, the
Training Team contracted Learning Pool to
host Blenheim’s new e-learning site. In preparation
for its launch in April 2016, the team designed the
system, content, and a set of different learning
pathways to provide bespoke training to our
staff in every role. The core training programme
was reviewed to blend face-to-face training and
e-learning to maximise impact and accessibility.
V
olunteers gave around 3,100 days of their
time across the charity
W
e implemented a Volunteer Development
Book that is used during a volunteer’s threemonth induction to evidence the competences
and knowledge gained and encourage reflective
practice.
What have volunteers
made possible?
At Latch House, our volunteer counsellor’s day job
involved working with cancer patients. Following
a suggestion by our service user group, the
volunteer took the lead and co-facilitated a group
Volunteers can give you a fresh insight
and perspective into how you’re running
your service, especially if they’re in recovery
themselves. You’re constantly refreshed.
I like the way Blenheim works with our
volunteers –marrying up the right support
and training so the volunteer experience is
of mutual benefit.
Eileen Doyle, Service Manager
16 Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16
Blenheim has a proud history of investing in the development of
our people. We believe that well-trained, knowledgeable staff and
volunteers help us to deliver innovative, evidence-based interventions
that have a positive impact on the lives of our service users.
T
In 2015/16:
V
olunteers benefited from a range of
skills training, including Boundaries and
Communications skills, Alcohol Awareness, Drug
Awareness, Assessment and Risk Screening and
Planning Towards Recovery
Training
Everyone at the service wanted me
to get as much out of volunteering as I
could. I took all the formal training on
offer and was so inspired by the passion of
people working here. I loved the feeling of
being part of a service that was making a
difference to people’s lives. That gave me
such a buzz.
Tom Colley, Recovery Worker
and former volunteer
on men’s health, looking at the early signs and
symptoms of cancers that specifically affect men.
At RISE, a fully qualified volunteer nutritional
therapist co-facilitated and co-wrote the diet and
nutritional content for the ‘Healthy Me’ group
programme.
The Training Team developed new in-house
Motivational Interviewing training, Managing
Difficult Situations training and relaunched our
Club Drug training to further examine trends in
chemsex and associated risks.
We worked alongside six peer mentor coordinators to develop a ten-week training package
for Blenheim peer mentors. To further support the
In 2015/16, we ran 98
days of skills training
to staff and volunteers.
delivery of the peer mentoring package we also
piloted new Group Work Skills training that linked
into a Train the Trainer e-learning module as well
as a face-to-face session.
In conjunction with our Hepatitis C manifesto,
we oversaw the final roll-out of specialist training
by the Hepatitis C Trust across the whole
organisation. Service-based Champions went on
to attend a further three-part training programme
on hepatitis testing and treatment with Gilead.
We continued to build on our relationship with
neuroscience academics at the University of
Roehampton, holding the first of two successful
Knowledge Transfer sessions in July 2015 on
the effects of novel psychoactive substances
on the brain. Going forward, we are devising a
neuroscience programme to be accredited by
Roehampton University, incorporating both
face-to-face sessions and e-learning with an
accompanying publication – The Brain Toolkit.
The Training Team have maintained Blenheim’s
reputation for quality training nationwide. We were
awarded repeat contracts delivering training to
organisations such as the Single Homeless Project
(SHP) in London and Refuge, as well as new
commissions from mental health organisations.
At K&C ETE, an IT volunteer helped to provide
basic IT support as well as to launch the ‘Units of
Sound’ IT package, which service users could use
to develop their literacy skills.
At CASA Alcohol Service, a team of three volunteer
counsellors were fully integrated into the service.
When service users are stable and want more
support, they can be referred to a counsellor
for assessment and counselling sessions. The
volunteer counsellors give us the capacity to offer
service users the opportunity to address underlying
issues within a safe and contained environment.
Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16 17
Campaigns
and Events
Blenheim actively and effectively campaign on behalf of people
stigmatised by drug and alcohol use. After over 50 years of social
action we continue to be a loud advocate for those with some of the
most complex needs in society.
D
uring the year we have committed resources
to address the most pressing inequalities
for our service users, and ensure that the sector
presents a joined up voice to government.
Campaigns
Naloxone
Naloxone reverses the effects of opiate drugs
and saves many lives worldwide every year. Due
to limited availability, the Naloxone Action Group
(NAG) England was formed to increase access to
Naloxone across England. Blenheim is a member
of NAG England and in 2015/16, the group:
Increased media coverage of Naloxone, raising
awareness to the potential of this life saving
drug to the general pubic.
S
uccessfully campaigned for legislation to
be changed to allow people working in drug
treatment services to be able to supply the
drug, without a prescription, to anyone at risk of
an opiate overdose.
The project intends to effectively engage with
the new government, identify the most effective
mechanisms to represent the interests of service
users, and create alliances across other relevant
sectors to identify issues of shared concern, such
as mental health, criminal justice, and housing.
Hepatitis C Treatment
Public Health England reported that in 2015, 50%
of injecting drug users have hepatitis C, up from
45% in 2005. As part of Blenheim’s hepatitis C
manifesto we continued the training of Hepatitis
C Champions with the Hepatitis C Trust and
embedded the learning across the organisations.
Our Hepatitis C Champions will help us to identify
the levels of hepatitis amongst our service users
and to support the people affected to access
treatment.
Collective Voice
In 2015/16, 94% of
Blenheim’s new service
users that inject drugs
or have previously
injected drugs had a
hepatitis C test – up from
87% in 2014/2015.
Blenheim is part of Collective Voice, formed in July
2015 by a group of drug and alcohol treatment
service providers, to ensure that the voices of the
drug and alcohol sector and those who use its
services are adequately heard.
The senior management team continues working
with the Hepatitis C Coalition and the London
Working Group on Hepatitis C to lobby for
increased access to treatment.
P
rovided input into the development of
a framework produced by Homeless Link
for managers in accommodation-based
homelessness services to implement good
practice around using naloxone.
18 Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16
Drugs, Alcohol and Criminal
Justice Parliamentary Group
Blenheim, along with WDP and Addaction,
continues to fund the secretariat of the Drugs,
Alcohol and Criminal Justice Parliamentary Group.
The group provides a forum for group members
and parliamentarians of all parties to discuss
policy and best practice matters concerned with
drug and alcohol use, treatment services and the
justice system.
Events
Recovery Street Film Festival
For the second year running we organised the
Recovery Street Film Festival in partnership with
Addaction, Action on Addiction, Turning Point,
Phoenix Futures and Drink and Drug News. The
festival showcased three-minute inspiring films
made by people affected by addiction with the
theme ‘My Story’. We took the films to the streets
across England and Scotland to break down
barriers and reduce stigma surrounding drug and
alcohol problems.
Blenheim hosted one of the festival events in
Lewisham Town Hall. Two films made by Blenheim
service users from ReAL and Latch House were
shortlisted to be shown around the country.
Service User Art Exhibition
The exhibition was held at the Chelsea Theatre
from 19th November - 3rd December. Service
users explored two themes: ‘Identity’ and ‘Road
to Recovery’. Many of Blenheim’s services (Latch
House, Oasis, ReAL, CASA Alcohol Service, R3, KC
North Hub, CASA Families, Partners and Friends,
CASA Family Service, Rise and Insight K&C) were
involved with art workshops delivered by two
volunteer art therapists.
We are extremely grateful to all service users
who shared their artwork, and for the generous
donations received from the public.
Wonderful exhibition. Brings me to the
memories of hopelessness and depression of
addiction, but reminds me of the celebration
and delight of being free! As long as there is
life there is the opportunity to change, find
new healthier pleasures and actually live!
Drug and Alcohol Today (DAAT)
Conference
Blenheim sponsored the DAAT conference on
3rd September in central London, produced
by Pavilion Publishing. The conference, in its
twelfth year, focused on the themes of harm
reduction, Naloxone, supporting families, recovery
communities, Hepatitis C, domestic violence, and
psychoactive substances. The Office of National
Statistics also launched the 2014 drug related
deaths figures.
Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16 19
Our Values
As a value-driven organisation, Blenheim
keeps quality, honesty, innovation and
integrity at the heart of all we do.
B
lenheim will be developing new partnerships
across London. We will launch a new Drug
and Alcohol Wellbeing Service in Hammersmith
& Fulham, the Royal Borough of Kensington
and Chelsea, and the City of Westminster in
partnership with Turning Point.
Innovation
We have responded to the changing landscape of
the sector by entering into partnerships to offer a
range of services, including our new Reintegration
and Aftercare Lewisham service (ReAL) with
ThamesReach, our new integrated services
Arch and R3, and our employability programme
Learn2Earn with the Octavia Foundation.
We strive to explore innovative and interesting
work at Blenheim and are excited to continue
working with Club Soda to make nights out better
for everyone. Based on research in pubs and bars
in Hackney, our partnership will develop digital
tools to support responsible drinking.
Blenheim joined in partnership with
ThamesReach to deliver on TRIO, a targeted
outreach programme that helps rough sleepers,
the hidden homeless and vulnerable women,
offering rapid interventions in every London
borough.
We have developed a partnership with Club
Soda to secure a grant from Hackney Council
to deliver an innovative digital pilot, which will
bring together pubs, bars and their customers to
promote responsible drinking.
We have developed relationships with
researchers from six academic institutions to set
up access to Blenheim’s services to aid research
into substance misuse.
Integrity
Our active and ongoing campaigns work
focuses on Naloxone, hepatitis C, and
advocating for the provision of adequately
funded evidenced-based treatment in the UK
that drives both recovery and harm reduction.
We submitted a response to the independent
Dame Carol Black Review on the relationship
between drugs and alcohol and barriers to
employment, and supported a letter to the
Telegraph on Government cuts to public health
and the effect on our frontline services.
We improved our monitoring of safeguarding
cases through implementing a centralised
database across all services, significantly improving
management oversight of safeguarding.
20 Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16
What’s next
for Blenheim?
Quality
In response to changes to the April 2015
Care Quality Commission (CQC) regulations,
Blenheim developed a new internal CQC
assessment framework and guidance pack for
the CQC registration and inspection process.
We successfully registered the CASA Family
Service with the CQC in March 2016.
As well as our commitment to a skilled
workforce and training, we passed the first stage
of becoming a registered training provider with
the Skills Funding Agency.
Honesty
Blenheim has invested in data management
personnel, data management software, and
training to enable us to continue to evidence our
performance and the quality of our treatment
outcomes.
In August 2015, our Information Security
Management System was recertified by the
BSI under ISO27001. For the audit Blenheim
demonstrated our commitment to information
security, specifically around the management of
client information.
Blenheim training will roll out state-of-the-art
training tools via Learning Pool, giving our staff
and volunteers access to user-friendly and
accessible e-learning. We will be continuing to
work with the University of Roehampton to share
learning between neuroscience academics and
Blenheim staff and volunteers on the ground.
The next year will see Blenheim tendering to run
more services in London and beyond. We will
also be commencing our ambitious fundraising
strategy to diversify our income and provide a
‘I started drinking heavily about 20 years
ago, after a marriage breakdown and the
loss of a parent. Due to drinking, I was out of
employment for 15 years. After an alcohol
detox and a year of abstinence, I came to ReAL.
I attended sessions on relapse prevention and
the women’s group. I then felt ready to write
myself a ‘bucket list’ to identify my goals: to
learn how to use a computer and to get a job.
Without the help from ReAL, there’s no way
I would have ticked these things off my list.
The service really focuses on getting people
back into the community and giving you the
tools to do that. Having the weekly IT support
and access to the IT suite was invaluable as I
step-change in funding for innovation and new
ideas. Reconfigured structures at Central Office
will drive forward change and embrace the
opportunities the sector now provides.
Blenheim will continue to provide leadership to
the sector in campaigning to improve the quality
of life for our beneficiaries, working closely with
Collective Voice and the Drugs Alcohol and
Criminal Justice Parliamentary Group.
could drop in to use the computers for my job
search, as well as speak to the staff about my
CV and do role plays for interviews. Everyone
was so supportive and helped me to make the
changes I needed to make.
I’ve been in part time employment
with a major supermarket for just
under 2 months now. I’m really
enjoying the role – and I now have
a new ‘bucket list’! I’m hoping to use
my new income to buy a passport and
save towards a holiday – I haven’t had
one in almost 20 years.’
Service User at ReAL
Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16 21
Special Thanks.
Financial Statements
STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES (Including Income and Expenditure Account)
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2016
Unrestricted
funds
2016
Restricted
funds
2016
Total
funds
2016
Total
funds
2015
£
£
£
£
128,520
-
128,520
195,512
4,144
-
4,144
4,812
INCOME FROM:
Donations and capital grants
Investments
Charitable activities
7,858,043
2,162,970 10,021,013
9,538,245
TOTAL INCOME
7,990,707
2,162,970 10,153,677
9,738,569
Charitable activities
8,185,491
2,178,022 10,363,513
10,155,570
TOTAL EXPENDITURE
8,185,491
2,178,022 10,363,513
10,155,570
NET EXPENDITURE BEFORE TRANSFERS
(194,784)
(15,052)
(209,836)
(417,001)
(16,078)
16,078
-
-
(210,862)
1,026
(209,836)
(417,001)
EXPENDITURE ON:
Transfers between Funds
NET INCOME / (EXPENDITURE)
RECONCILIATION OF FUNDS:
Total funds brought forward
4,509,325
369,542
4,878,867
5,295,868
TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARD
4,298,463
370,568
4,669,031
4,878,867
All income and expenditure derive from continuing operations.
The Statement of Financial Activities includes all gains and losses recognised during the year.
BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31 MARCH 2016
2016
£
£
2015
£
£
FIXED ASSETS
2,764,250
Tangible assets
2,797,349
CURRENT ASSETS
Debtors
Cash at bank and in hand
CREDITORS: amounts falling due within
one year
777,906
694,376
1,406,349
1,651,016
2,184,255
2,345,392
(279,474)
(263,874)
NET CURRENT ASSETS
1,904,781
2,081,518
NET ASSETS
4,669,031
4,878,867
370,568
369,542
Unrestricted funds
4,298,463
4,509,325
TOTAL FUNDS
4,669,031
4,878,867
CHARITY FUNDS
Restricted funds
22 Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16
As always we would like to give
special thanks to our staff,
volunteers and service users.
We would also like to thank
the following funders, partners
and supporters.
Partners
Adfam
Build on Belief
Barnet, Enfield and Haringey
Mental Health Trust
Central and North West London
NHS Foundation Trust
Club Soda
Cranstoun
CGL
Gilead
East London NHS Foundation
Trust
Nacro
Phoenix Futures
Release
UK SMART Recovery
South London and Maudsley
NHS Foundation Trust
Thames Reach
The Hepatitis C Trust
The Institute of Psychiatry
Turning Point
University of Roehampton
Westminster Drug Project
Funders
Barnet, Enfield and Haringey
Mental Health Trust
BBC Children in Need
Campden Charities
City Bridge Trust
Central and North West NHS
Foundation Trust
Cranstoun
Cripplegate Foundation
East London NHS Foundation
Trust
EPIC ELM
Family Action
Henry Smith Charity
John Lyon’s Charity
London Boroughs of Bexley,
Hammersmith & Fulham,
Haringey, Harrow, Hillingdon,
Islington, Kensington and
Chelsea, Lambeth, Lewisham,
Redbridge, Southwark and
Westminster.
Pilgrim Trust
Public Health England
South London and Maudsley
NHS Foundation Trust
St Barts NHS
Thames Reach (Employment
Academy)
University of West London
Wornington Green Youth
Project
Youth Action Alliance
When I came here, no one was put down. It didn’t
matter what ability I had: everyone’s input mattered. It’s
given me confidence in myself. There’s a whole world out
there. There have been times I wanted to take my own
life in the past. But there’s life here. Now I feel like I’ve
reconnected to life.
ReAL service user, on their experience of the
Pavement2Catwalk creative workshops.
Trustees
Dr Judith Abbott
Tom Breen - Treasurer
Alex Boyt
Gillian Budd
Eric Feltin – Chair
David Rice
Adam Shutkever
Ralph Weller
Chis Ford – Resigned February
2016
Robert Graham Harrison –
Resigned August 2015
Sally Marlow – Resigned
February 2016
Patrons
Baroness Hayter
Lord Clarke of Hampstead C.B.E
K.S.G
Lord Ramsbotham
Tracey Crouch MP
Chief Executive John Jolly
Medical Director Dr Matthew
Johnson
Thank you to all the
Blenheim service users
who allowed us to use
their stories.
Special thanks also go
to www.hollyrock.co.uk
for designing this report,
and www.davidxgreen.
com for his photography.
Thank you to service
users from R3 ETE service
for contributing their
photographs to
this report.
Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16 23
Do you want to
support Blenheim?
Donate
To make a donation, please go to our Just Giving
page. 90p out of every £1 you donate will go
directly to help our service users.
Volunteer
You can apply today via the form on our website.
Become a Friend
Sign up to become a Friend of Blenheim on our
website and receive regular updates on our work.
Follow us
[email protected]
www.blenheimcdp.org.uk
@BlenheimCDP
Friends of Blenheim
Blenheim Central Office, 210 Wandsworth Road, London, SW8 2JU
Tel: 020 7582 2200
© Blenheim CDP 2016 Charity No. 293959 Company No. 01694712
24 Blenheim Annual Report 2015/16