Co-operation in Drug Treatment Services: Views of Offenders on Court Orders in Scotland

Abstract

Accessing client perspectives about co-operation in substance misuse treatment offers important information to enhance services and improve drop-out rates. This article reports upon qualitative data from a localised study of service needs of offenders in Scotland who were undertaking community-based court orders. The views of 27 men and two women on their current and recent treatment offers rich insights into factors influencing their co-operation in treatment. In contradiction to the voluntaristic ideology of treatment services, their voices identify the criminal justice system as offering strong support in the completion of treatment programmes. At the heart of the current UK government's ten-year strategy for tackling drug misuse is to improve 'the participation of problem drug misusers, including prisoners, in drug treatment programmes which have a positive impact on health and crime' (Cabinet Office 1998, Aim (iii), p.11). With significant capital investments, drug treatment services have been respond- ing to UK policy concerns about the number of problematic drug users