ABSTRACT
Over the last two decades interventions for substance misusing offenders in the community have arisen following raised government priority and the subsequent targeting of resources. Crime reduction has been a key part of successive government’s agendas since that time, and with evidence suggesting a link between high volume acquisitive crimes and funding substance misuse, initiatives aimed at reducing crime rates by tackling substance misuse amongst the criminal justice population became commonplace. Studies across the western world show that between 70 and 80 per cent of the offender population have substance use patterns in need of some kind of intervention, and over 50 per cent of offenders acknowledge that substance use is related to their index offence. Substance misuse represents one of the most criminogenic factors which contribute to offending behaviour (Weekes et al., 2013). Early intervention with young people is also a priority. Evidence suggests that offending begins before drug use starts, and well before dependence takes hold, then escalates dramatically as the cost of maintaining a heroin or crack cocaine habit increases (Makkai & Payne, 2003; Pudney, 2002).
