Recipient organisationRAND Europe Community Interest Company
Funding£2.1M
PeriodJul 2023 — Apr 2026
In plain English
AI plain-English summary
The government is spending billions on a 10-year drug strategy called "From Harm to Hope," and this research will check whether that money is actually improving treatment and recovery services across England. Local authorities are receiving funding to set up tailored programmes for housing support, workforce training, recovery communities, and new medications like Buvidal. But no one yet knows which approaches work best, for whom, and at what cost. This project fills that gap by running six separate evaluations—one overarching process evaluation and five deep dives into specific interventions. If successful, the findings will tell policymakers exactly which programmes deliver value for money and which do not. That could reshape how the entire treatment and recovery system operates, from how staff are trained to how housing support is integrated with clinical care. The research also explicitly examines whether implementation widens or narrows health inequalities, so the results could help ensure that the most vulnerable groups are not left behind. This is applied policy evaluation, not fundamental science. Its impact depends on whether DHSC and local authorities act on the evidence produced.
View original technical description
AIM: The aim of this research is to evaluate the early stages of the Department of Health and Social Care s (DHSC) work on the Treatment and Recovery (T&R) Portfolio, through which the government s 10-year drug strategy "From Harm to Hope" will be delivered. DHSC, with the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID), is distributing funding to Local Authorities so they can put in place substance use treatment and recovery support strategies tailored to the needs of their community. We will conduct an overarching process evaluation of how Local Authorities are implementing programmes under the Portfolio. We will also conduct process, outcome, and where possible, impact evaluations of priority programmes relating to housing support, service provider workforce development, recovery communities, service integration, and Buvidal provision. BACKGROUND: OHID has provided Local Authorities with a list of evidence-based interventions they can use. The list covers ten broad areas including increasing treatment capacity, expanding the skills and size of the workforce, and residential rehabilitation and inpatient detoxification. DHSC will evaluate the impact and value for money of the Treatment and Recovery Portfolio; this research project is designed to feed into this work and provide an understanding of how outcomes and impacts are achieved. METHODS: This research involves six evaluations: the overall process evaluation of the T&R portfolio and five intervention-focused evaluations. The research approach will be tailored to each evaluation using an approach that builds on the Medical Research Council guidance, the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research, and the conceptual framework of Equity-focused Implementation Research for health programs. We will use a range of research methods to gather and analyse data including focus groups, interviews, surveys, and analysis of routine data. Case studies will be used for in-depth exploration of key evaluation questions. In all evaluations we will seek to include a diverse group of Local Authorities and to explore whether implementation affects some groups of people in ways that may reinforce or create health inequalities. STAKEHOLDER INVOLVEMENT: The scope of this research means that stakeholder involvement needs to include not just the public and service users and their carers, but also those who provide services, and those who are responsible for delivering the changes. Our research approach includes mechanisms for involvement of stakeholders at all stages of the design, conduct, analysis, and dissemination of the research. TIMELINES: This is a 30-month project, with interim findings delivered after 12 months. DISSEMINATION & IMPACT: We will produce detailed project reports, plain English research briefings, and slide decks to describe the research. A detailed strategy for sharing the research findings will be created with the Patient and Public Involvement Advisory Group for the project and other stakeholders (including the public, service users, services providers, commissioners of services, and policy-makers). This may include infographic summaries, plain English leaflets, message-led policy briefings, blogs and podcasts/videos.
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