Angela Constance MSP, Minister for Drugs Policy, has officially opened Renfrewshire's new Recovery Hub, CIRCLE (Continuing in Recovery Changes Lives Entirely).
CIRCLE is a new service from Renfrewshire Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP), developed to provide enhanced support to local people on a recovery journey from issues relating to both mental health as well as from drug or alcohol addiction. It is a first of its kind in Scotland to offer this range of support.
Today (26 October 2022), the Minister was given a tour of CIRCLE, where she met members of staff and was introduced to local people already benefitting from the newly refurbished facilities on Paisley's Glasgow Road.
From the outset, a guiding principle of the service has been that all major decisions are considered and taken in partnership with local people who have lived or living experiences of mental health, alcohol or drug related issues.
The hub, which first opened its doors in November 2021, has been designed to address a key gap within Renfrewshire's mental health and alcohol and drug services, where a lack of recovery opportunities for people in treatment was previously identified.
It will act as a central recovery hub for individuals referred to the service, with recovery activity being delivered across local communities throughout Renfrewshire. People are also encouraged to self-refer, which they can do by phoning 0300 300 1199, (option 2, then option 4) or emailing ci.circle.recovery@nhs.scot.
The Minister for Drugs Policy was joined by NHSGGC Chairman John Brown, alongside John Matthews and Cllr Jennifer Adam, Chair and Vice-Chair of Renfrewshire's Integration Joint Board (IJB) and Christine Laverty, Chief Officer for Renfrewshire HSCP.
Commenting, Minister for Drugs Policy, Angela Constance said:
"I am pleased to open Renfrewshire's new CIRCLE Recovery Hub and to hear how it will help local people to find the type of recovery which works for them.
"Recovery programmes are vital to the success of our national mission to reduce drug related deaths and improve lives. CIRCLE is an excellent example of how organisations can come together to provide holistic and person-centred support.
"Listening to the voices of lived and living experience in the design and delivery of services is crucial so it's encouraging to hear that the Hub has been developed in close collaboration with service users.
"We have invested £250 million into our National Mission which aims to ensure people have access to the treatment which works for them and I am determined every penny of that will make a difference."
NHSGGC Chairman, Professor John Brown said: "A strong, reliable and accessible recovery service is a key element in providing a full suite of care within our mental health and addiction services. The hub is already helping a number of patients on their recovery journey, and I hope to see it play an increasingly important and central role in supporting many others on their own journeys for years to come.
"I'd like to thank all of the people who helped make the hub a reality. It's a testament to their hard work and dedication that we're able to provide such a fantastic service to people in recovery within the community."
Councillor Jennifer Adam, Vice-Chair of Renfrewshire IJB, added: "Having the Minister for Drugs Policy here to open CIRCLE really shines a light on the transformation that recovery support has undergone within Renfrewshire in recent times. We are already looking to the future and are finalising plans to develop a new medium-term programme of activity aligned to the 'Connected and Caring Renfrewshire' theme which was introduced at the National Recovery Walk last month."
Christine Laverty, Chief Officer of Renfrewshire HSCP completed the comments by adding: "Like most successful initiatives, it has been a real collaborative effort to get CIRCLE to this stage. I would like to thank everyone involved, especially our excellent HSCP staff as well as those people with lived and living experience, who have been at the heart of this development and instrumental in shaping how our services will operate. This is a service for people on a recovery journey and it will always be our guiding principle to involve them every step of the way."
ENDS
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