Main Navigation:

Where to get help:
Drug Services in your area

November 2008

Other Events

November 2008
December 2008
May 2009

Scroll down for other events

51st ICAA Conference on Dependencies

2 – 7 November
Cyprus

The theme for this year's conference organised by the International Council on Alcohol and Addictions is "Empowering the practitioner”. The content has been developed to inspire reflection concerning policy, theory and practice.

Other issues include:

Managing Change
Targeting Populations
Reaching Youth
Shaping Practices

ICAA's mission is to promote public health and to advocate for informed and compassionate policy-making in the addictions field; for ideology-free research and for a well trained and empowered work force.

For further information see www.icaa2008.org

Supporting Recovery - an event to explore the experiences of supporters and carers and their role in recovery

7 November
Perth

This Scottish Recovery Network event is an opportunity for people to discuss recovery and its implications for family members, informal supporters and carers of people experiencing mental health issues.

This is an exploratory event designed to inform and encourage further work around the role of informal supporters in promoting recovery.

It is a free event and is aimed at anyone who provides informal support to someone who is experiencing mental health issues. People with lived experience of mental health issues who are keen to discuss the role of supporters in their recovery and those who provide support or represent carers and informal supporters through their work are welcome.

See Link opens in new window www.scottishrecovery.net/content for more details.

Alcohol and Young People: Breaking the Cycle of Binge-Drinking, Anti-Social Behaviour and Violence

12 November
London

Speakers include:

- Chief Inspector Adrian Studd, The Metropolitan Police
- Roger King, Visiting Fellow, The Office for Public Management (OPM)
- Tony Goodall, Alcohol and Substance Misuse Lead, Leeds PCT
- John Bateman, Chief Executive, UK Youth - CONFIRMED

See Link opens in new window http://insidegovernment.msgfocus.com/c/12iepw6Og40p8wI7 for more details.

Scottish Prostitutes Education Project (SCOT-PEP) AGM

12 November
Edinburgh

Margo MacDonald, MSP, is among the key speakers at this event which will be held at SCOT-PEP, 70 Newhaven Road, Edinburgh, at 6pm.

Contact: office@scot-pep.org.uk

Collecting information to report on outcomes

7 February – Glasgow, Renfield St Stephen’s Church
23 April – Edinburgh, Evaluation Support Scotland (Rose Street)
18 September - Glasgow, Renfield St Stephen’s Church
13 November - Edinburgh, Evaluation Support Scotland (Rose Street)

Evaluation Support Scotland works with voluntary organisations and funders so they can measure the impact of their work. This conference aims to help these groups if they are fairly clear about the outcomes of their project but need some ideas about how to collect information to measure them.

Staff or volunteers from voluntary organizations attending this workshop will:

Learn how to set outcome indicators to help you decide if you are achieving your outcomes.
Learn about methods and tools to collect information about outcomes.
Draw up a simple monitoring and evaluation plan for your project.

Contact: tel 0131 243 2770 or email info@evaluationsupportscotland.org.uk

The New Drugs Strategy – A clear focus on families?

19 November
London.

The new drugs strategy for England, Link opens in new window

Drugs: protecting families and communities, was launched in February. It recognises the importance of preventing harm to children, young people and families affected by drug misuse. It places families firmly within drug treatment policy, identifing the need to support parents and kin carers, and sets out an action plan which aims to deliver a new package for families.

But how far will this strategy be translated into actions which will make a difference to parents, children and families? This conference brings together key themes from across a broad spectrum of policy areas related to families and substance misuse, and places the importance on understanding their needs, and finding solutions for their problems, within a wide-ranging context.

For more details, see Link opens in new window

http://www.pavpub.com/pavpub/conferences/showfull.asp?Conference=762

Ecumenical Service of Remembrance

20 November 2008

St Alphonsus Church
London Road
Glasgow

Family Addiction Support Services (FASS) is holding its annual Ecumenical Service of Remembrance
for all those who have died through drug/alcohol related problems.

The Service will start at 7.30pm and will be led by:

Rev Tom Welsh, St Alphonsus Church
Rev Peter Davidge, St Luke's & St Andrew's Church
Ann Lyall, Lodging House Mission

2010 and Beyond: A New Era for Mental Health Policy in the UK

20 November

London

If current trends continue, depression will be the second leading cause of disability in the world by 2020.

One in six adults in the UK - irrespective of gender, age, nationality, cultural heritage, profession or religious grouping - has mild to moderate and severe mental health conditions such as depression, phobic anxiety, obsessive compulsive or personality disorders. These numbers suggest that issues related to mental health or, mental wellbeing affect every family and business in the UK.

The World Health Organisation defines mental health as: “…a state of well-being in which the individual realises his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community.”

The Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health (SCMH) states that a third of sickness absences from work can be accounted for by mental health problems. Furthermore, the SCMH reported that the cost to the UK economy of people being out of work with mental health problems is approximately £10bn (October 2007). According to a recent report by the King’s Fund, over the next 20 years, the combined cost of lost productivity due to mental health problems and, the direct cost of health and social care will double in real-terms.

This forum will allow delegates to discuss, among other issues, the social, housing, employment and healthcare needs of people with mental health conditions, their families and their employers as well as the following:

By moving beyond a siloed approach to mental wellbeing: what do we mean by joined-up services?
Mental health at work: what are the best means to promote mental wellbeing at work?
Mental health advocacy and the law: where do we stand?
Mental health and Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) communities and their families: what are the specific requirements of these communities?
Employment matters: developing self-management, and return-to-work programmes for people with mental health conditions
Tackling discrimination using the Equalities Act
Service design, provision and access: putting the user in control
Meeting the mental health needs of adolescents
Best practice in action: community-based, non-coercive, social service provision
The criminal justice system and mental health: the African-Caribbean experience
Removing barriers: tackling health inequalities
Championing early intervention and preventative mental health programmes

See http://insidegovernment.co.uk/health/mental_health/ for more details.

Addiction and the Family

21 November 2008
Bristol

The University of the West of England, University of Bath and Avon and Wiltshire NHS are hosting this conference. Topics will include: Addiction & the family, children, alcohol, illicit drugs, risk taking, young people, adults, older adults resilience, bridging the research/practice/policy divides, treatment options and behavioural couples therapy.

Speakers & Chairpersons will include Colin Bradbury, Douglas Cameron, Alex Copello, Vivienne Evans, Henk Garretsen, Michael Klein, Tim O'Farrell, Jim Orford, Martin Plant, Moira Plant, Don Shenker, Lorna Templeton & Richard Velleman.

Further details may be obtained from: Mrs Jan Green, Alcohol & Health Research Unit, University of the West of England, Blackberry Hill, Bristol BS16 1DD, United Kingdom.

Tel: 0117 328 8800 Fax: 117 328 8900; E-mail: Jan.Green@uwe.ac.uk

Eradicating Child Poverty in Scotland

24 November
Glasgow

Keynote speakers:

Nicola Sturgeon MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing, The Scottish Government
Rt. Hon. Stephen Timms MP, Minister of State for Employment and Welfare Reform, The UK Government
Adrian Sinfield, Professor Emeritus, Social Policy, University of Edinburgh

In 1998, both the Scottish and UK Government pledged to eradicate child poverty by 2020. While some progress has been made, there is a risk of not being able to meet these ambitious targets. Where do we go from here? What actions can we take now to get back on track to meeting these targets and keeping up the good work undertaken so far?

Key issues the conference will consider include:-

•    Embedding the child poverty agenda in the Single Outcome Agreements (SOAs)
•    Identifying and overcoming barriers to sustained employment
•    Improving the take up of tax credits and benefits
•    How Holyrood and Westminster can work together to achieve the eradication of child poverty
•    Areas of multiple deprivation and rural poverty
•    The role of gender in child poverty
•    Poverty in the school holidays
•    Fuel poverty for children and families

Alongside the Cabinet Secretary and Minister, delegates will also hear from academic and business leaders who will offer their expertise and case study examples to consider how best to tackle in-work poverty, create sustainable jobs with access to career development opportunities, and how business, individuals and the Government can work together to reduce the barriers to employment for parents across the country.

This event will give delegates the opportunity to learn about the Government’s anti-poverty framework, and feed into the ongoing inquiry into child poverty being undertaken by the Local Government and Communities Committee at the Scottish Parliament.

For more details and regular updates, please see Link opens in new window http://conferences.holyrood.com/content/view/562/142/