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Chapter 5: The Impact of Markets on the Communities
Introduction
This section focuses on the harms resulting from the location of a heroin market within a neighbourhood. From discussion of the characteristics of the markets in the three areas, views are presented from the three communities on the impact arising from the local availability of heroin.
The comments of users, user/dealers, the parents of users, wider community members, and police and professional respondents are drawn upon to describe the perceived harms resulting from heroin markets.
The visibility of markets
In each of the three areas we were interested to question the level of detail community members held about the nature of the market. From building up a picture of heroin markets, primarily from heroin buyers and sellers, we felt it was also important to question the views among the wider community and the level of detail upon which they were based.
The visibility of heroin transactions and the level of public use were of particular interest.
The visibility of transactions
In each area the harms resulting from heroin use, and the presence of 'known' users were particular themes. The information received regarding the actual operation of local markets was limited. Nor was there any degree of uniformity, with reported views often based on individual suspicion rather than first (or even second) hand experience.
In Fishton and Hailton a number of respondents reported the selling of heroin in public spaces. One parent reported seeing sellers ' openly dealing' in the town centre, whilst another regularly witnessed cars pulling up and 'things being passed through car windows', which she suspected were a type of drug.
In Hailton over half of the community respondents believed the area outside the local pharmacy to be the site of heroin deals. The gathering of a number of individuals awaiting their methadone prescriptions was seen to coincide with the selling of heroin. In addition, three respondents in Hailton claimed to have witnessed drug dealing in public, whilst four spoke of incidents of individuals coming to their door, believing their home to be a source of drugs. One respondent reported that living next door to a suspected dealer resulted in the constant disruption of individuals 'coming and going'.
The communities in Fishton and Hailton were more likely to discuss the reputation of the area, and the level of harms resulting from the availability of heroin, for example:
"The area has a reputation for heroin, there are a number of individuals on it as you see people affected by it - strung out-, do not see them getting it but just the effects".
(Female, Community Respondent, Hailton)
Within our sample it could not be said that these views were based upon the high visibility of heroin transactions. It was not generally clear whether respondents had seen heroin transactions actually taking place. With this in mind coupled with the findings from chapter 4 it appears that markets are primarily away from the public view. The actual markets, in terms of buying and selling, appear to be relatively hidden.
Discarded needles/public use of heroin
The level of public use and any resulting level of discarded needles or other paraphernalia was comparatively low, particularly when compared to the reported frequency of use. As we did not access any harm reduction data our findings are based on interviews with the samples of respondents drawn.
Users reported that the quality of heroin was a determining factor in their actions. In Fishton and Tannochbrae the majority of users agreed that the poor quality of heroin had caused them to turn to injecting. In Hailton this did not appear to be the case. The quality of heroin was seen as poor by those users interviewed, but smoking (or 'tooting') remained the preferred method of use, based on the area having a 'historical reputation' for this.
Whatever the method adopted, the majority of users preferred to use in their own home (for reasons of comfort, safety, access to clean equipment) and therefore drug use in public spaces and discarding of drug paraphernalia (needles, syringes, silver foil) was limited. The very small number of those who admitted to using in public places, such as public toilets, stairwells (usually of a dealer's block of flats), etc., told us they did so because they had travelled far to score, were 'rattling' or wanted to use straight away for fear of being caught with the drug on them. Public use, according to one professional respondent in Hailton, was seen as a characteristic of those individuals who are heavy users, those individuals who are using up to 10 times a day, and will use when and where they can. It was not seen as a uniform act.
Reports by community respondents of discarded paraphernalia in each area were limited. In Hailton two individuals reported that they had found needles or other works in public:
"Drugs are being used in stairwells. In 6 1/2 years I have only seen one needle but lots of foil and subsequently I have had to clean up after them".
(Male, Community Respondent)
"Needles are found on stairwells".
(Female, Community Member)
In addition one police officer reported a reduction in needle finds, due, in his opinion, to a move by local heroin users away from injecting to smoking the drug.
"I don't know whether the message has got across about the dangers of needles, but they're just not getting used as much, but still the ones that are there, and foil, people don't want their kids walking about in that, their pets or themselves."
(Community Beat Sergeant)
In both Fishton and Tannochbrae only one community respondent (in Fishton) reported having seen a discarded needle, leading to a subsequent and prolonged fear of letting her children play out. The limited feedback in this regard, particularly in Tannochbrae was due to the small number of community interviews undertaken. Police respondents in these areas were much clearer about the frequency of incidents:
"Needle finds, you get a lot of people phoning in about that. You go and pick them up, generally they wouldna pick them up themselves, they'd phone us and say there's needles sitting here or sitting there".
(Police Constable, Fishton)
"However, what we've also noticed is that they're very, very careless in discarding needles and we get a lot of reports from the general public sometimes - discarded needles in all manner of areas - parks, play areas, communal stairways, public toilets, public amenities, and that's just not acceptable".
(Community Sergeant, Tannochbrae)
Based on the samples drawn, it is difficult to produce definitive statements. It does appear, though that incidences of heroin paraphernalia being discarded are low. Whether this is a result of the levels of service provision in Tannochbrae and Fishton, as reported by local professionals, or an act amongst users to avoid this practice is unclear. The level of related harm does appear to be low, but even a low number of incidents has the potential to generate negative feelings towards heroin users within the community.
The communities' views of heroin users
Community respondents were asked how they viewed heroin users, and any resulting level of harms. We specifically wanted to know on what basis any representation of heroin users was formed, and if this could be related to any experience of harm.
We found that all three communities reported a greater awareness of heroin availability as an issue, because of their perceptions regarding the scale of this issue and the number of 'recognisable' heroin users. In Fishton and Hailton in particular, a significant number of community members told of how they were able to recognise a heroin user and/or were aware of where they tended to congregate.
The suggestion of being able to recognise heroin users did not automatically lead to a sympathetic understanding of their situation. In fact it appeared to lead to two contrasting views: one of understanding and one ultimately of fear.
In the two areas where most community members were interviewed - Fishton and Hailton - those feeling sympathy to users were in a minority, forming less than a quarter of the total sample. There was a general consensus among community respondents that whilst some members of the community could sympathise with drug users, the vast majority lacked tolerance and understanding.
"I can understand heroin use and that it's difficult to get off. I feel sympathy for drug users, I can relate to them, it's an illness. In the community as a whole there is no sympathy towards drug users because of crime, being frightened of them and fearing that their own children will get into drugs."
(Male, Community respondent, Hailton)
This view was representative of both those in each area who saw heroin use as 'an illness', and something requiring service provision, and those who viewed users with suspicion and fear. in Tannochbrae and particularly in Fishton these respondents were (in the majority of cases) likely to have known an individual before the onset of use, and thus have more understanding about the situation users found themselves in.
In Hailton, though, knowing a user or having a user in the family did not exclusively generate understanding. Two community respondents, despite having close relatives using heroin, had simply lost patience with them because of the problems caused by their drug use.
For those with negative views towards heroin users there was no recognition of individual difference, or the various factors leading to the initiation of use. They were seen as individuals who could bring harm and therefore to be avoided.
Generally negative views of drug users were only attenuated when there was indirect experience of heroin use and its associated problems. The widely held negative images of users were tied into the notion that these individuals had made a choice, and were now trying to make excuses to justify the choice and why the community should help or sympathise with them.
Users' first hand experience
The majority of heroin users interviewed had experienced some form of negative response from non-drug-using community members. Experiences of this nature could not be applied at all, whilst users' experiences varied based on their ability to hide their use, e.g. dressing respectably, and/or seeking treatment.
In Tannochbrae users overwhelming felt 'looked down on' and 'ignored', feeling isolated from the wider community. They had experienced name calling, with terms such as 'scum' or 'junkie' being common; violence was reported, but only one user had direct experience of this. The predominant feeling was how their life had changed since the onset of heroin use, and the need to avoid potential harassment.
However, three of those we interviewed in Tannochbrae felt that the community had become so accustomed to drug use, that users were no longer harassed.
"At first people would shout...''Junkie this and junkie that''…but now 1in 5 of their family are taking it or are selling it".
(Male, User)
"Not (treated) too badly. Drug use is such a big problem, people are used to it".
(Female, User)
In addition only one user (in Hailton) reported that he had experienced any form of harassment or negativity. Three respondents in Tannochbrae stated that the way a heroin user looked or their lifestyle influenced how they were treated by community members. Dressing ' respectably' could ensure against 'abuse' in the community. One user reported that if you are willing to get treatment, attitudes may change:
"Some see the difference in me and say well done, you're doing great, and I'm feeling good and I have gotta girlfriend…"
(Male, Ex User)
Respondents in both Tannochbrae and Fishton felt it unfair that as heroin users they were all seen to be the same, that they were all viewed as criminals who injected and discarded their needles in public. In Fishton, in particular, over three-quarters of users interviewed felt community members were hypocritical due to the widespread use of heroin across the community:
"They look down their noses but there's not a family in [Fishton], whether it's extended family, they've got someone who's affected".
(Female, User)
It was suggested too, by users in both Fishton and Tannochbrae that community members ought to realise that heroin use might affect their own family at some point down the line; for example in Fishton:
"We're despised by some people but it could happen to anyone".
(Male, User)
Parental views
The parent of one user in Fishton felt that there was a lack of understanding and tolerance towards drug users by the community, particularly those whose families were not directly affected by drugs:
"Their attitude's…..'shoot them all'….People are naïve they don't see drug addicts as human beings who have a problem; unless you've experienced it you can't understand".
(Female Parent, Fishton)
A similar view was advocated by other parents in the same area who felt that if an individual was not affected by drug use, they would have a zero tolerance approach. They would see the tackling of drug use as a 'waste of taxpayers' money' and users should be 'removed from the area'. This view, it was argued, did not recognise the strain drug use places on the family unit.
Some parents had noticed how their drug using son/daughter had been treated in a less positive manner by community members and public services. In Hailton, interviews with a number of affected family members including parents/carers revealed a variety of views, from compassion to condemnation.
Drug-related crime
In each of the three areas we found drug-related crime to be a pertinent theme. When asked about the impact of heroin on the locality, community respondents frequently mentioned the effects of crime. Community respondents, on the whole, made the link between petty crime (such as vandalism and theft) and heroin buying and selling. For most respondents, drug users and dealers were seen to be the main perpetrators of criminal activity in a given area.
For community respondents related crime was seen as the main harm resulting from the availability and use of heroin. However, in many cases respondents appeared to be talking more about issues related to the fear of crime rather than actual criminal acts they had experienced directly, and fear of crimes that could not necessarily be attributed to heroin buyers and sellers. It appeared, particularly in Hailton that there was a real tension between those involved with heroin and the wider community based upon the perceived harms resulting from drug use.
The fear of crime
We found community respondents often spoke of their fear of crime associated with the buying and selling of heroin. This is to say that they were fearful that they or their close circle might become a victim of crime at the hands of heroin buyers and/or sellers. In some cases, their fear of crime had led them to alter their lives (from the simplest things like ensuring that they did not walk alone at night to taking adequate steps to secure their property against theft and burglary).
The fear of crime could not necessarily be linked to the availability of heroin. It was difficult, for example to separate concerns stemming from the use of heroin with broader issues of crime within the area. We found that the fear of crime did not necessarily reflect the actual picture of crime in the area, and many of those who spoke of their own fear of crime acknowledged that they had not personally been a victim. Although, they did note that they had 'heard' of people that had been a victim, and had seen and read reports in the media.
Heroin users in each area were considered to be individuals who commit crime and this contributed to community respondents' levels of fear. In Hailton we found this to be particularly marked. Although, respondents attributed some of this to the effects of locals' heavy drinking, it was commonly felt that the use of heroin equalled crime and thus constituted a local concern. As discussed above, the majority of respondents had not been an actual victim of crime, but many had either been offered stolen goods or had known of incidents affecting friends or fellow residents. For example:
"There is a lot of crime; I have never been a victim. Houses get robbed, car stereos, the wheels of cars - due to dealers placing orders for certain items, and shoplifting. They are brazen about going into shops and stealing".
(Female Community Member)
"People are afraid of walking through the area, particularly at night when it is like a ghost town - a culture of fear - due to the possibility of violent attacks. In my experience, alcohol users will approach you, but not substance misusers".
(Female, Community Member).
Police respondents in Hailton reported that the fear of crime was apparent among the local community. In Hailton people were reportedly afraid to use common stairs - especially at night - as they keep finding used needles, vomit, etc. They were also afraid of making complaints due to the fear of retribution. Hailton respondents argued that a lot of crime goes unreported. There were still ' groups of young people terrorising the local area'.
"Residents don't want to stick their necks out by taking action against dealers as they say 'we have to live here'".
However, the situation was reported to be better now than it used to be.
The same issues were apparent in Fishton, where the fear of crime when walking the streets (particularly at night time) were reported to have increased among community respondents due to the perceived (though not actually experienced) increase in attacks against the person. As a result, some community respondents said they would not walk alone at night, and others reported that they would not even leave the security of their own homes because of this fear. One community member stated that attacks on individuals on the street have ' certainly increased' and therefore she is unwilling to go to town at night without her husband. Another community respondent reported feeling ' frightened' to walk about in one part of town as she had 'heard' that there had been an increase in people being mugged. As in Hailton, we found very few Fishton community respondents were able to report actual violence against themselves. In one isolated instance, however, one parent recalled an incident where staff at a fast-food outlet had been threatened with a hammer; the respondent knew that the incident was drug-related as the perpetrator was a family friend who was using drugs.
Several community respondents in Fishton and Tannochbrae reported that large groups of young people, (whether they are using drugs or alcohol or not) are 'intimidating' and can 'put people off' visiting the area or prevent local residents from venturing out (particularly after dark).
In each area we found it difficult to separate out what is or is not heroin-related crime. In addition we are reliant on the views of a limited sample. However, it did appear that within each area crimes experienced or heard about were deemed to be drug-related, especially where the continued need to fund heroin use was concerned.
Funding drug use
In contrast to the prevailing view amongst the community respondents interviewed, users reported that heroin use is not exclusively funded by criminal activity. Even within the small sample sizes it was certainly interesting to gain such differing views. In this section the views of users are contrasted with those of police and professional respondents.
Users' views
Users told us that crime was often a means of funding drug use. However, some users reported that they funded their use through legitimate means such as employment or state benefit. For example, in Fishton a small number of users told us that they were receiving state benefits which adequately funded their use: whilst others told us that they used this money to try and start up dealing (user / dealer). Nor was this view confined to Fishton; indeed, a small number of users in other areas felt strongly about this:
"Junkies get blamed for everything, not always unfairly, but we're not all the same.…I supported my habit through working and then dealing so I didn't have to break into people's houses. It's wrong to commit crime against the person".
(Male User)
Users told us that shoplifting or drug dealing were the main crimes committed to fund their habit. For example:
"Some people sell on stolen items, jewellery, gold, electrical appliances, TVs, DVDs, MP3's etc to fund their habit".
(Male User)
The vast majority of users interviewed reported that violent crime or crimes against the person were less frequent, although they acknowledged that they did occur from time to time but would often depend on the type of person and level of need to 'score'. For example, a user in Hailton who reported that she had funded her habit through benefits had herself experienced a break-in twice, by a neighbour who stole from her to fund his habit.
Users in all three areas reported that the general decrease in the quality of heroin had had an impact on levels of related crime. A decrease in quality meant that more 'bags' (at their standard price) would be required to satisfy their use, and thus increased funds would be needed to fund this demand. However, a clear consensus on this failed to emerge. A decrease in quality may be offset by other means, for example by moving from smoking to injecting heroin.
Community respondent/parent views
The communities' views on drug-related crime, albeit strong, were not unanimous, and thus the representation of 'a heroin user' also varied. A strong fear of crime did exist, especially regarding violence against the person. The fear of this type of crime conflicts with the experience as reported by drug users interviewed.
As outlined above, we found that not all users commit crime to fund their use, and those that do, tend to shoplift or deal drugs rather than commit the violent crimes feared by community members. The users' first hand experience coupled with the lack of first hand evidence from community respondents would suggest that violent crime is the exception rather than the rule.
"People think that heroin's a dirty drug and that you will do anything to get it, steal off your granny etc, which some do, but not everyone".
(Female, User)
Many parents and carers (and other relatives) of drug users reported that their drug using relative had stolen from them to fund their habit. Products that had been stolen had to be replaced at the expense of the family. A number of those interviewed within one area (Hailton) who had been subject to this reported that they had lost all sympathy towards their relative. In this area heroin users had reported that dealers would not offer credit, as they knew another user would always come to them with the actual money required.
Police/professional views
Unsurprisingly, all areas reported a high level of drug-related crime. Most of this was acquisitive crime:
"…that goes along with drug misuse - there are shoplifters or whatever, drug users fund and finance their drug habits through shoplifting and it's a particular problem".
(Sergeant, Hailton)
Police in Tannochbrae calculated that probably about 70-80% of shoplifters use it to fund a drug habit. Their colleagues in Fishton agreed:
"I would say the majority of the work is - if it's not aye, handling drugs itself, most of the crime is drug related. You could probably go through the system - very little of the calls that we get are nae connected to drug users ….I would say 80% of the crime here is drug related in some way".
The story in Hailton was the same:
"There's quite a lot of house breaking going on and shoplifting. They sell the goods to get the money for the habit".
In addition, two respondents felt the community in Hailton should take responsibility for not buying stolen goods. However, this was considered to be difficult for some, as goods that they could not normally afford would be sold by drug users at a markedly reduced price. A cited example concerned baby clothes. Drug users would consider these items worth stealing due to the potential market for them in the area. Individuals would subsequently buy these, even though they were against drug use and drug users. Respondents argued that community members must take responsibility in not buying stolen goods. This may include shoplifted goods, but also those stolen from houses in the area.
In Fishton, one police sergeant expressed surprise that levels of drug-related crime were not even higher in his area. This could probably be traced to the fact that many drug users were able to fund their habit through full-time employment, a practice that was, to some extent at least, accepted by the community and, more importantly, by the users' employers.
"So we don't have the accompanying house-breaking problem, for instance, that you would get necessarily in (City), which has got a colossal house breaking problem in some areas. We don't seem to have the acquisitive crime that's associated with the level of drug activity in the area, and I can only put that down to a work ethic".
This respondent thought the levels of acquisitive crime In Fishton would be even higher if a minority of users in the town were not funding their habits through full-time employment.
Within each area it is not possible to state the level of acquisitive crime and its relation to heroin use. We suggest that there are differences between the two, with this varying between areas. Fishton, for example may have a number of heroin users in paid employment.
Community respondents in each area saw a wide range of crimes as attributable to heroin use. For professional and police respondents and also for users there was a focus on acquisitive crime. In many cases what community respondents described could be seen as anti-social behaviour, which might or might not be linked to heroin use.
Violence
Violence and other crimes against the person were a particular example of the community being fearful. Amongst users, and professional respondents alike there was a consensus that in all three areas violence was generally linked to disputes between heroin buyers and sellers. A gradual rise in the use of crack-cocaine was also cited.
Police respondents in both Hailton and Tannochbrae expressed rising concerns at an apparent increase in crimes against the person, at least some of which were also related to the need to fund a heroin dependency.
"I'm not talking about guns and all the rest of it, but I'm talking about physical violence between members of the drug community impacting on normal, decent members of the public in that community, seeing junkies fighting with junkies and squabbling over drugs and this sort of carry on".
(Police Sergeant, Tannochbrae)
Critical to this in Hailton was the advent of crack-cocaine use.
"The experience of other places has been that because of the nature of crack, then it's going to be worse and that they're going to crave the drug even more than they are heroin".
Community respondents in Hailton considered the actual threat of violence to be a low one but it would still influence their decision whether to venture out of the house at night. This was particularly the case for individuals who deemed themselves to live in notorious parts of the District, and when walking past the pharmacist at particular times of day.
Actual acts of violence were considered rare, but of increasing frequency if users were suffering withdrawal. In Fishton users told us that violence amongst user/dealers occurred due to individuals feeling that they could 'rip-off' a dealer and get away with it. This was seen as contingent upon the need for an individual to be able to 'back-up' the activity of dealing due to the general increase in competition from other user-dealers. One female user in Fishton recalled how she and her boyfriend had been beaten-up by a crack-user for their supply of money and associated earnings to feed his crack dependency. She demonstrated fears about the gradual influx of crack-cocaine into the area and a possible resultant increase in violence.
A small number of users in Fishton and Tannochbrae reported being fearful about travelling to certain areas due to the possibility of violence.
"Wouldn't walk at night- certain areas X Road (Fishton), rough, robbery linked to drugs".
(Male, User)
In Tannochbrae users felt the general lack of violence was linked to the refusal by dealers to offer credit, as violence tended to occur more when money was owed. In Hailton, users reported the situation to be similar to that in Tannochbrae, with comparatively little incidence of drug-related violence. In Fishton, however, the relatives of users and user/dealers said they had often witnessed the violent consequences of drug debt. Within this area one particular respondent (due to the nature of his work) had experienced varying incidents of drug-related crime and could demonstrate knowledge of these within the community.
"Shoplifting, house robberies, intimidation by having homes vandalised,- windows smashed, fire bombed etc, people physically attacked, violence is there, it's all part and parcel and surrounds the drugs scene".
(Community Respondent)
Prostitution
A limited number of respondents in all three areas identified prostitution as a means of funding a drug habit. In Fishton, a user (and ex-prostitute) and a community member told us that prostitution, although relatively new and hidden from the majority of the population, did occur. Prior to this it was reported that sex workers had been forced to travel to the nearby City to ply their trade.
In Hailton prostitution was seen as an act born of the nature of drug users' relationships with each other. A number of prostitutes in Hailton were briefly spoken to, with the help of a local service, but as they were not heroin users they were not formally interviewed. They told us that heroin users are part of a 'secret society', a 'community' within themselves whereby the need to finance a dependency led those seen as 'desperate' to resort to prostitution to raise the necessary funds.
Impact on the family
For all areas we asked a varying number of parents/carers and associated family members the level of and type of harm resulting from having one or more heroin users within the family. We particularly wanted to understand the effect within the family unit.
Impact on parents and siblings
Parents of drug users, police respondents and some users themselves reported that drug use has a major impact on a family, both emotionally and financially.
"Drugs tear the heart out of families".
(Parents, Fishton)
We found a marked issue of trust amongst parental respondents due to acts of theft from the family home. In Fishton one couple reported locking up their valuables when their daughter visited, whilst another family only learnt their child had fraudulently obtained money via their credit card when they received their statement. Some parents were concerned that their drug-using child/children may influence their non-drug-using sibling/s and this was often a factor in the difficult decision to ask their drug-using child to leave the family home. We found also that the fear of harm to their drug-using child through drug-related attacks or overdoses caused a huge amount of anxiety and distress for parents/carers. One parent in Fishton reported that between them her two sons had overdosed 30 times. Her main aim had become to preserve the life of her sons " My objective today is to keep my boys alive". Another respondent stated that 36 of her son's friends had died through drug use.
Police respondents, particularly in Fishton, related incidents concerning the greatest impact of substance use on families, that of drug-related deaths among family members.
"We've had four deaths in the last six weeks here. Not every one can be directly attributed to the main cause being drugs, but they were all drugs-related. Two of them, the first cause was drugs. The third and fourth I think there was narcotic involvement, so there was maybe some medical ailment problem. So you're talking about a major impact on the community, in particular two of them are related. They were partners basically so the boyfriend died of a medical matter, but narcotics involved, and then she died literally a week after of a drugs overdose, so that's, if you talk to the family there, a major impact".
(Detective Sergeant, Fishton)
One family, in Fishton told us how they had felt forced into both financing a child's drug use and taking them to a heroin dealer while waiting to access local services and rehabilitation. They did not want their child to get into trouble with the police by undertaking criminal acts to obtain heroin, reported this parent. The stress caused by their children's drug use had led the respondent to drink heavily.
Despite the presence of a family support group in the area, parents reported that families found it difficult to admit their child had a drug problem and therefore were unwilling to access the support available to them. Some parents had received counselling, although there was a waiting list for this service. For one Police respondent, the local community tended to be unforgiving, attaching a particular stigma to the whole family.
"You get a young boy that makes a mistake in life, has a crash, and kills his friend or kills somebody, the community don't really ostracise them, hate them as much as the rest. It was a mistake. The boy made a mistake. That boy makes a mistake, takes drugs and gets hooked. You know, the stigma attached to that is the whole family is cast away".
(Detective Sergeant, Fishton)
The presence in Tannochbrae of voluntary agency support provided invaluable assistance to one parent who had lost her son through drugs.
Emotional feelings towards drug users within the extended family unit were divided within Hailton. No parents/carers were interviewed as part of this research, but a number of respondents who had relatives, (a brother or sister) involved in heroin use had literally (as told to the research team) gone beyond the point of caring. The amount of stress imposed by their drug use had branded them ' selfish individuals', who had made their own choice in life and thus should suffer the consequences. This point was in stark contrast to those relatives we interviewed who saw heroin users as suffering from an ' illness'. These individuals were more willing to offer support within the family unit.
In addition, Police respondents in Hailton reported that the close-knit nature of the local community means that someone complaining about drug dealing may in fact be related to someone actually doing the dealing:
"…somebody's complaining about there's a dealer at the bottom of such and such a street, what are the police doing about that? And I'll maybe have somebody on the other side of the room who's keeping their head down because they're related in some way".
(Divisional Housing Initiative Officer, Hailton)
A common theme highlighted by community respondents and users within all three areas was the importance of protecting young people from the perceived high availability of illicit drugs.
"For the young people it's terrible, it's impossible to get them through their teenage years without coming into contact with drugs".
(Female, Community Respondent)
"A need to educate kids, can't just let them play at anyone's house. I won't let my son go with anyone except my parents as I can't trust anyone else".
(Female, User)
Increased forms of provision, in terms of both education and diversionary facilities, were considered necessary. For example one parent in Fishton felt that whilst drugs education has improved it should be 'kept on the agenda'. Another community respondent in the same area felt that whilst youth provision was increasing with the construction of an all weather football pitch and a skate park, more investment in young people was required.
In Hailton, the presence of extended family units, were seen as possibly providing young people with 'role-models', within which drug use may become a form of learned behaviour. This view was also highlighted by one community respondent in Fishton. In contrast, however, community respondents in the same area were confident that the drugs message was getting through to young people and in fact the presence of a drug user within a family unit served to deter young people from using drugs:
"Younger people (academy age) have a negative attitude towards drugs and drug users".
(Community Respondent)
Impact on the children of drug-using parents
There was a concern among all those interviewed (including drug-using parents themselves) that children of drug using parents were likely to become involved in drugs:
"A lot are brought up by parents who are addicts and then they become addicts themselves".
(Male, User)
In addition, some respondents discussed other ways in which children were affected by their parents' drug use. Loss of one or both parents, either through death (overdose etc) or through general neglect, was identified as a problem. Indeed, in Hailton community respondents commented on the quality of upbringing many children were receiving. This was part of a general view that heroin users would put their dependency (and its maintenance) before the welfare of their child.
This view was shared by Police respondents in Tannochbrae.
"…family environment, if they've spent to feed their drug habit, the children who're living within that environment, and the impact it has on them in terms of their schooling, the lifestyles, the chaotic lifestyles that they lead, and there's spin offs there in terms of domestic violence they encounter".
(Community Sergeant, Tannochbrae)
He went on to explain that the police have a duty of care to take action in response to this, a duty that passes beyond the basic policing of drug use:
"And there's a duty of care particularly in terms of children, young people, that if they're living within a drug affected household, and they're particularly their health and well being, then there's a duty under the Children Scotland Act for us to report those circumstances to the Children's Reporter, so that the needs of the children and maybe a partner or anybody else who are in that drug affected environment are being looked at and addressed at the same time".
Many drug users interviewed (including user/dealers) told us that they were unable to see, or had only limited contact with their children; this they identified as the biggest factor in their desire to move away from the world of drugs and to become clean:
"I've 3 Kids, I've missed them growing up. I don't want them to get into that lifestyle or get hassle because their dad's a junkie".
(Male, User)
The perceived need to protect children from the influence of drug use had also affected one respondent's childhood; she told us that she had not been allowed to play out as a child due to the close proximity of a local drug dealer.
Summary
From the samples of community respondents' drawn there was little first-hand evidence concerning the high visibility of heroin transactions. When this is coupled with the findings from chapter 4 it would suggest that dealing in public is the exception and not the rule.
Both users and professional respondents reported low levels of needles discarded in public, particularly when compared to the frequency of use. Users prefer to undertake their business away from public view, but may use semi-public areas ( e.g. stairwells, public toilets) if they are rattling or if they are afraid of being caught in possession of the drug by the police or by other users.
Users reported experiencing a substantial amount of harassment from members of the communities in which they live, but only on rare occasions does this take the form of violence. Users' family members also experience difficulties, especially children taunted by their peers at school. However, experience of abuse could be reduced by hiding evidence of the habit through, e.g. dressing respectably, and/or by seeking treatment. These views were substantiated by the interviews conducted with community respondents in all three areas.
Fear of crime and in particular fear of drug-related crime is apparent across the three areas. However, in only a very few cases is this fear based on first-hand experience of crimes that have actually occurred. But it still limits respondents' actions, for instance making them less willing to venture out alone late at night. Views varied concerning the extent to which local crime is fuelled by drug use. While the large majority of community respondents believe that all drug use is funded by criminal activity, users dispute this, reporting that this is not exclusively the case. However, although paid employment or welfare benefits may support some users' habits, most will resort to theft, perhaps initially from their own family, if or when their dependency escalates. Violence and other crimes against the person are reported to be far less common, although there is some evidence that the incidence is increasing. There was a consensus among respondents that it is generally limited to disputes between drug users and dealers and the enforcement of drug-related debt, although there are fears of an increase in violence linked to a gradual rise in the use of crack-cocaine.
There is evidence of both sympathy and intolerance by community respondents towards current and ex-users. Those that were sympathetic towards current and ex-users tended to have a drug user in the same family unit or to have known a user before the onset of substance use. Because of this bond, community respondents are more tolerant as many see their addiction as 'an illness'. Many attempt to help the individual, whilst being conscious that strains being placed on the family unit may ultimately affect community relations, due to the pertaining negative stigma of drug use. A common theme within all three areas was the protection of young people from the perceived high availability of illicit drugs. This was especially important in families in which one or both parents were themselves users.
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