This section examines the recent and historical trends in the misuse of specific drug types. Data recorded by the police showed that drug offences were 30% higher in April to June 2020 compared with April to June 2019. This was largely driven by rises in offences involving the possession of drugs, and reflected proactive police activity in pursuing crime during lockdown restrictions, rather than genuine changes in drug use. The Global Drugs Survey showed that respondents who used drugs in the past year reported changes in the frequency of their drug use compared with before the pandemic.
- For the drug groupings, men make up over two-thirds (opiate 72%, non-opiate only 68%, non-opiate and alcohol 70%).
- There has been a notable increase in the proportion of people starting treatment for powder cocaine use in Scotland and Wales in recent years.
- This is most likely because nitrous oxide is currently still legal to sell for certain purposes1.
Trends in substance use: all adults in treatment
You can find more information on a range of public health topics, including other profiles and their indicators, on the Fingertips tool. Of the people still in treatment at the end of March 2020, over a third (40%) have had 4 or more treatment journeys and over a quarter (26%) have been in treatment continuously. You can also see how local areas compare on the numbers of dependent drinkers who are not in treatment on the Public Health Dashboard. A circular chart showing the split of males and females in treatment along with a breakdown of the substance group.
Treatment Success Rates
Children and young people often enter alcohol and drug services with a range of problems or vulnerabilities related to (or in addition to) their substance use. Vulnerabilities are reported here only for children and young people who entered drug and alcohol treatment services during 2023 to 2024. This includes adult settings (prisons and immigration removal centres) and the children and young people’s secure estate. There were 566 young people receiving drug addiction treatment treatment for drug and alcohol problems in secure settings in 2023 to 2024, a small increase from 2022 to 2023 (550). The median age of adults in treatment in secure settings for alcohol only and for opiate use was 39 years old. This compares with 47 years and 44 years respectively for people in treatment in the community.
Parental status and safeguarding children
- Just under half of all adults (42%) received treatment for problems with opiates.
- Alcohol prevalence estimates from 2015 to 2016 up to 2019 to 2020 are available in Alcohol dependence prevalence in England.
- This need ranged from 67% in the opiate group to 77% of the non-opiates and alcohol group.
- They come in different forms including herbal mixtures that are smoked, powders, crystals, tablets, or liquids.
- Over three-quarters (77%, 38,351) of the total adults in treatment started treatment during this year, the same proportion as last year.
- The proportion of people starting treatment with opiate problems (but not crack problems) has decreased from 25% in 2015 to 2016 to 14% in 2022 to 2023.
There were similar patterns for the use of individual drug types (see Appendix table – Section 3). However, for the youngest age groups these latest estimates remained lower than they were in the year ending December 1995, falling from 31.8% for 16- to 19-year-olds and 28.1% for 20- to 24-year-olds. For more detailed figures on frequency of drug use see Appendix table – Section 2. The survey also asked respondents whether they had used nitrous oxide3 (also known as laughing gas) in the last year. While the Psychoactive Substances Act made the sale of nitrous oxide for use as an intoxicant illegal, it substance abuse in older adults is currently still legal to sell for certain purposes4.