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Working with young people: A profile of projects funded by the Partnership Drugs Initiative
Dundee Link Project
The project is aimed at children aged between 11 and 16 whose lives are affected by substance misuse, either their own misuse or that of another family member. Those of its clients that are misusing substances are generally experimental users, rather than heavy users with chaotic lifestyles. Moreover, since the advent in summer 2002 of another Tayside Council on Alcohol (TCA) project directed specifically at young people who were using substances themselves, the project has focussed primarily on those affected by others' misuse, most commonly of alcohol. It has however accepted referrals of children as young as seven and may occasionally see those older than age 16.
August 2001
It has a staff of two workers and a share of both an administrator and a co-ordinator. All of these staff had been working for or had been linked with the TCA prior to the establishment of the project. One of the workers is a qualified art therapist while both have received appropriate training for their current roles. The project also has at any one time around eight adult volunteers who act as mentors and group facilitators. The support of their work is the principal task of one of the workers. These volunteers are carefully screened and receive appropriate training.
The project operates in the Dundee area.
Work can take place both at the project and away from it.
Young people whose lives are affected by substance misuse, either their own misuse or that of their parents/siblings, although since summer 2002 the project has focussed on the latter group with the former being supported by another TCA project.
From August 2001 to Summer 2002 the age profile of clients is illustrated in Figure 19 below:-
Figure 19
The gender profile is as follows:-
No information is available on the ethnicity or disability of clients.
There is no specific time period over which the project will work with a client, although a review will take place after six months. Typically, however, the balance of activity with a particular client shifts after a while from individual work to group work. Service users may eventually become members of the project's Young Person's Advisory Group which plays an important role in the work of the project, including staff and volunteer recruitment.
The service provided by the project is directed at the child rather than the family, although a bespoke mixture of individual support, one to one counselling, art therapy and group support may also be offered. The individual support provides an opportunity for the child to express their concerns and fears, to discuss their parents' circumstances and to consider strategies that might help the child cope with the situation. The counselling uses a psycho-dynamic approach. The art therapy is designed to provide a safe environment conducive to allowing the child to express themselves, either through their art or in conversation. Group activities take a variety of forms, such as after school plays or cinema trips, and are intended to overcome social isolation. Where appropriate the project will engage other agencies to provide specialist support such as bereavement counselling.
There have been 25 referrals to the project to date. The pattern of referrals is as shown in Figure 20:-
Figure 20
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