ABSTRACT
The introduction of directly elected police and crime commissioners (PCCs) in 2012 represented a significant shift in policing governance and a new model of political leadership in the United Kingdom. With a focus on the West Midlands, this chapter explores the PCC role and the journey to develop and deliver a harm reduction drugs policy. The West Midlands has been chosen as a case study because in February 2018, the PCC published a report setting out eight recommendations to introduce a harm reduction approach to drug policy in the area. The recommendations include diversion, naloxone provision, heroin assisted treatment, drug safety testing, and drug consumption rooms. Having delivered this approach in the West Midlands, the authors are able to share their learning. They conclude that PCCs have become ‘drug policy actors’ or enablers of a harm reduction drug policy due to their ability to draw on formal and informal governance mechanisms. In addition, the unique nature of the role means that delivery of a new approach to drug policy can be done at pace, and traditional barriers to change are more easily overcome. The chapter concludes by providing a ‘how to’ guide to allow other practitioners to develop similar harm reduction approaches in local areas across the United Kingdom or internationally.
