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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Remit
1. Our remit was to consider the current performance of ADATs and their capability to deliver future Ministerial priorities on drugs and alcohol. The fundamental questions posed were: is the partnership approach the best way to deliver real improvements in combating substance misuse in Scotland; and, if so, are ADATs the best model for this? If the partnership approach is not the best way to deliver improvements, what is the alternative?
Is the Partnership Approach the Right One?
2. Following extensive consultation and examination of the evidence available, our overwhelming conclusion was that a partnership approach was essential to an effective approach to tackling substance misuse in Scotland.
3. We considered whether more progress could be made if each organisation were simply charged with responsibility for taking forward its own individual activities independently, but with no co-ordination of the local delivery of these components. However it was clear, from the evidence considered and our observation of what worked well, that a joined up approach, bringing together the resources and commitment of organisations in a shared strategy was more likely to address need effectively.
4. We also considered whether one organisation should be tasked with lead responsibility and, in effect, have to drive the actions of the other organisations. In a very few ADATs where there was a very dominant lead partner, that was in practice the approach. But although it meant that the lead partner achieved good provision in its own area of responsibility, other partners appeared marginalised, disengaged and, sometimes, resentful and this undermined effective co-operation.
5. We concluded therefore that neither of these approaches offered advantages over a partnership. We also concluded very firmly that there was a need for a partnership dedicated to tackling substance misuse. Experience outside Scotland suggests that the focus on substance misuse could be lost if ADATs were to be subsumed into another existing and broader based local partnership.
Are ADATs the best model?
6. We found ADATs that do excellent work tackling some of the most challenging and complex societal problems that we experience in Scotland today. We saw many examples of action which demonstrated that ADATs had made a positive difference to local circumstances. That is not to say that we found all ADATs to be fully effective. In a number, we found some serious shortcomings.
7. The shortcomings included poor leadership, lack of commitment and an insufficient understanding of the strategic aims of the ADAT. Some of these shortcomings were attributable to the absence of up to date national policies and priorities for drug and alcohol misuse which reflect current understanding of patterns of substance misuse. Some were due to the need for a comprehensive review of the role of ADATs, not substantially changed since their predecessor organisations were first established in 1989 and 1995. However, the need for more national leadership and direction was by no means the sole reason for lack of effectiveness at local level. Some ADATs had significant gaps in membership and poor attendance did not seem to be acted upon. There was a tendency in some areas to allow historic relationships to impede the achievement of objectives and improvements in local services. In a number of ADATs the members had no shared vision of strategic aims. Some ADATs operated with overstretched support teams even when financial resources were available.
8. However, many ADATs had made a positive difference by identifying and meeting local needs. The key characteristics we identified in the more successful ADATs included some or all of:
- Strong leadership
- A commitment to effective partnership working at senior level
- The right partners represented at the right level
- Clear lines of accountability
- A relationship with other local partnerships
- A clear understanding of the strategic role of the ADAT.
- An effective sub-structure which supported local service delivery
- Good analysis and information about local need
- Effective engagement with client groups.
- Effective performance management
- Good communication with the partnership and with the wider community
What could work better?
9. Throughout the Stocktake, we sought to identify what worked well and to find ways in which clear shortcomings could be remedied. Both are addressed in our recommendations.
10. We found that for ADATs to be more effective, there must be greater clarity about what is expected of them and by whom. There should also be greater clarity and openness about the full extent of local expenditure on measures to prevent and reduce substance misuse so that ADATs can channel these resources more effectively.
11. The composition and size of ADATs should be reviewed to take account of structural changes in the wider public sector environment and partnerships which have developed in recent years. We believe this may mean fewer ADATs but with a more strategic purpose and more direct accountability to Ministers. This would bring greater clarity and focus to the strategic partnership which would oversee a more local implementation partnership with strong links to other local partnerships, especially Community Planning Partnerships.
12. Support for ADATs should be strengthened and at the same time more should be expected of them. Performance management should be more robust at national and local levels so that all ADATs level up to the best. There should be greater consistency in the availability and delivery of local services across Scotland.
13. Finally, we believe that ADATs have a valuable role to play in contributing their knowledge and experience to the development of national policies. For this reason we have recommended the establishment of a committee of ADAT Chairs, chaired by the relevant Ministers to steer policy development and implementation.
14. Our recommendations appear throughout this report but, for convenience, the summary which follows groups them in accordance with the key themes of -Remit, Composition and Structure; Performance and Accountability; Integrated and Consistent Approaches; Resources; and Capacity Building.
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