The Road to Goodenough: Drugs, conferences, pubs and debate

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The Road to Goodenough Drugs, conferences, pubs
and debate

• David MacKintosh

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(No Transcript)
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What Goodenough says

• Views those with or experiencing substance use
  related problems within their community setting.
• Youth Services should be statutory.
• Improve housing provision.
• Primary care for substance use.
• No custody unless treatment available.

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1999 and the world of drugs policy

• Tackling Drugs to Build a Better Britain
  co-operative approaches for everyone who cares
  about the future of our society.
• Tremendous range of individuals and organisations
  in regular contact with a small body of
  Ministers, Czars and policy makers.
• Acknowledgement that TDTBABB bridged many
  conflicting ideological positions.
• Very vibrant sector intellectually and in terms
  of service development lively (!!) conferences.
  

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Growth, Management and Playing the Game

• Rousing conferences, arguments, and walkouts.
• Blackpool February 2003.
• LDPF Conference Local Matters autumn 2005. Debate
  retreated to the margins.
• Something significant and important seemed to
  have gone from the field.

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So what do you do?

• What was Goodenough aiming for?
• To allow people to argue and debate.
• Capture creativity while allowing it
  space.
• Re-kindle the passion that was smouldering.
• Add excitement to an otherwise dull life.

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Blowing on the embers

• Clearly many with a burning interest.
• The hook a new National Strategy.
• What would you like to see in the now?
• Work with others in identifying the who and how.

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Feed thirty minds and bodies.

• Real world simulation based on current
  political and legal position. No blank (but some
  big) cheques.
• Carefully crafted but still like herding cats.
• Debate on both the whys and hows of service
  delivery across the sector.
• Tremendous engagement.

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What we got radical middle ground?

• Surprising level of something approaching
  consensus
• Placed substance use firmly within the community
  not other.
• Focussed on the individual.
• Easy access/low threshold.
• Neither health nor crime focussed.

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What happened and where next?

• Blood tears and publication.
• Pleased with responses particularly welcomed by
  those outside the drugs sector.
• Much is up to YOU.
• Opportunity to help influence policy at
  international, national, regional and local
  level.
• Engage, discuss, argue.

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To Infinity (or at least 2018) and beyond

• Lets make sure it is Goodenough