Following the departure of our previous CEO Anna Smith, we’ve had an important role to fill in our organisation. We’re happy to introduce our new CEO Lydia Plant!
We spoke to Lydia about her new position at BDP…
Welcome Lydia!
Thank you!
You were given the position of BDP’s interim CEO upon Anna’s departure [BDP’s previous CEO], and of course were appointed the permanent position just before our new service Horizons launched, how have you been finding the role so far?
It’s been really great to get my teeth stuck into it. I’m really excited to start developing our next steps as an organisation and to keep driving BDP forward. On a personal level, the board of trustees, staff, volunteers and service users have been really supportive as I’ve moved into this new role. I’ve also been blown away by the support and advice offered to me by other leaders across Bristol- I feel lucky to have so many people to call on and to get new perspectives from.
It’s funny to reflect on because I’ve worked at BDP, on and off, for a really long time and it doesn’t feel quite real to think I’m the CEO!
Plus, it’s a really exciting time for BDP, we’ve just launched our new service Horizons, and we have some new roles in B&NES (Bath and North East Somerset) as part of a new partnership there. But it’s always an exciting time at BDP, we’re always getting involved in new things and there’s always a couple of different projects on the go that are really interesting, so I’m just overall grateful to be in this position and get to develop BDP further.
It’s safe to say you’re no stranger to BDP, and you’ve been working in drug and alcohol services over 15 years, talk me through your background working in services, how will your experience be an asset to BDP moving forward?
Where do I start!? I’ve been working in drug and alcohol services for over 15 years now… which is kind of wild! I started off at One25 which is an amazing charity who work with women in street sex work, and that role [mum & baby residential treatment worker] really shaped me a lot in terms of how I operate now. It was a really empowering place to work, they saw each woman and their child in a holistic, whole-person way. I learnt so much there.
Then I did an addiction counselling degree where I first came to BDP on placement. The degree was a real eye opener for me, that’s where my real passion for understanding the evidence base around drugs and alcohol treatment came to fruition; digging into what actually works. This is something that BDP represents through and through, and something I’ve carried with me my whole career.
It was at this time I got introduced to Harm Reduction as a philosophy and an approach. When I started learning about it, it just completely fit with the way I view the world, and the way it feels right to work with people. BDP has a really proud history of engaging in academic research, building the evidence base and taking a harm reduction approach to working with the people we support. Whether that be every day in our Advice Centre or doing outreach at clubs and festivals. So I like to think the way I navigate and the things I believe in, align really closely with what BDP has always been about – respecting people and their choices, recognising that people are the experts in their own life, but also that workers can have a positive effect on whether someone makes a change or not.
But yeah… I guess over the years I’ve done various bits of work – I was a detox worker, a group worker, I was involved in PRISM, BDP’s LGBTQ+ service, another one of my passions. I was a service manager at BDP and in another service outside of Bristol where I got to see the different parts of treatment, so I’ve got a good few years of experience that has led me to this role.
But crucially, wherever I’ve worked, there’s something about BDP that is really special to me, it aligns with my values and has also challenged me to think about whether what I was doing was effective and in the best interest of the people we are trying to support.
That’s a value I really feel passionate about carrying forward with BDP.
It sounds like being CEO at BDP means a lot to you?
It does. I get really emotional about it. Maggie Telfer [BDP’s late founder] had a huge influence on me, I have never met anyone so passionate, value-led and formidable. She always, always ensured that the service users were the most important people in the room. She was just so harm reduction focused in the widest sense, even when it was unpopular politically, she just really stood for the values of treating people with dignity and advocating for their rights. But also standing back and giving people room to speak for themselves.
Something that’s really special that I felt from Maggie was that everyone had something to bring, no matter their background. I probably wouldn’t have got anywhere near where I am today if people like Maggie hadn’t believed in me and supported me to feel like my life experience – whatever that looks like – was really valuable to bring to work.
When I first came to BDP, it was the first time I felt I could bring my whole self to the job and didn’t have to be someone that I wasn’t. This is something I really treasure at BDP, I hope that all staff can feel they can bring their whole self to work, and hopefully that creates a space where people that use our services can do so as well.
I have always felt immensely privileged and humbled that I get to work somewhere that holds these values, and I hope as CEO I get to continue this legacy and create a welcoming and inclusive environment for both our staff and service users.
We’ve just been through a huge recommissioning process that you played a key part in, how was that process for you and what are you excited about for both the future of BDP and the future of Horizons?
I played a role in writing our bid alongside colleagues from Turning Point. It was really exciting to work with an organisation where our values were aligned, even if we are comparatively quite different organisations. It was about thinking about what already works well in drug and alcohol treatment and where there were areas for improvement to see how we could develop an amazing, responsive system in Bristol. To have contributed to this is a huge privilege.
I feel really excited about Horizons, having a really integrated, easy to navigate system is something we really need. Having the other partner organisations involved really feels like it’s rooted in Bristol as well, they have expertise in supporting people from different communities and neighbourhoods, so hopefully we can provide holistic support from anywhere in the city.
It’s also really great to be at something from the start – to be able to take learning and put it into something new and build something together is an amazing opportunity. While there were lots of late nights and early mornings, it’s incredibly exciting to see something unfold in real time that is tangible and real for people and will provide the best support we can for people who currently use, and will use, our service.
Thank you Lydia, is there anything else you’d like to say?
Yeah, I think it’s important to acknowledge what the future holds for BDP. We’ve always worked in partnerships and been part of a system; collaborating and knowing we can’t do everything on our own is a really key value for us.
I’m looking forward to building BDP in terms of what we stand for, and working with staff, partners and service users to create something together. You know… really see what areas of need there are in our city and try step into that together.
BDP have been operating in Bristol for the last 39 years. During this time, we’ve made it a priority to evolve our services based on the needs of the people in our city who we support, and those who we aren’t yet reaching.
We’re excited to announce that BDP will now be joining Turning Point in delivering drug and alcohol services in Bath and North East Somerset (B&NES). Turning Point will be leading the treatment system, but BDP will manage 5 workers based in B&NES that will be delivering part of the service; 4 Engagement Workers and 1 Young Adult Worker (18-25). This is a great opportunity for us to bring our passion for harm reduction and engaging young people to B&NES.
The BDP Engagement Team and Youth Team has a proud history of delivering services in Bristol and championing the harm reduction ethos that is at the core of everything we do, often working with some of the most vulnerable people in our communities.
Workers in these roles require a broad set of skills and the roles are incredibly varied; from working at outreach stalls at festivals, providing clean injecting equipment from our health and harm reduction centre, in reach into hostels and actively engaging with some of the more vulnerable members of our communities.
We spoke to Nat Travis, National Head of Service at Turning Point:
‘Starting service delivery in B&NES was all about strengthening and extending our partnership with BDP to reach more communities. Every city’s drug and alcohol use presents differently, but having that neighbouring relationship between Bristol and Bath brings so many advantages through local knowledge and expertise. BDP have years of exceptional engagement practice and skills that they bring to the table, and harm reduction is at the forefront of what both Turning Point and BDP do, so bringing that combination of competence to BANES is going to be really valuable to our current and new service users. We have a great Young Adults offer for that transitional period from 18-25 as well as an Adults Service to work with people of all ages to find the support that’s right for them. With a harm reduction approach front and centre, working alongside our service users is of upmost importance and we’re excited to be working with BDP to make this a possibility.’
Lydia Plant, CEO of BDP said:
‘BDP has a proud history of meeting people where they are with compassion, dignity, and evidence-based solutions. We are excited to join Turning Point in B&NES, who share our vision for safer communities, stronger connections and easy access to a range of effective services.’
Want some support?
Do you live in Bath and North East Somerset and want some support around your drug or alcohol use?
Call 01225 342052, or click here to visit their website and find out more.
Photo taken from our Sober Spaces club night
Dry January has soared in popularity since its introduction in 2013, as many people find January the perfect time to reflect on their drinking and cut out alcohol for a month.
But is cutting alcohol out completely the most important aspect of this movement?
We’ll explore the benefits of taking a month off alcohol and how staying ‘damp’ this January can help you feel more in control of your drinking year-round.
Drinking alcohol of any amount can carry health risks, the more you drink, the more you expose yourself to these risks. So making any kind of changes to your alcohol can be beneficial for your mental and physical health.
Making changes around your drinking may involve cutting down, eliminating alcohol entirely, or participating in Dry January.
While abstaining from alcohol completely for a month may seem like the clearest measure of progress, an equally important marker of change is whether you feel more in control of your drinking in the long term.
Alcohol Change UK found that 81% of those who were completely abstinent in January, and 67% of those who were partially abstinent, felt more in control of their drinking one month after.
It’s clear to see the benefits of cutting down, but how do you make this change a reality, and how do you make it stick beyond the first month of the year?
Why, when, where, what and who?
Everyone starts somewhere, and unpacking your motivations and patterns around drinking may help you identify areas you feel most comfortable beginning this change.
Why? – Start by questioning your motivations behind drinking, why do you find yourself reaching for the next bottle or heading to the pub? This can be a daunting thing to unpack, so take your time, and be kind to yourself.
When, Where, What, Who? – Observing the patterns around your drinking can help you spot potential triggers. Triggers can be places, people, or anything that you associate with drinking. Think about what time of day you drink, where you do it, what you’re drinking and who you’re with. Can any of these patterns be changed to help you cut down?
Removing triggers as best you can will help with any cravings you may encounter, check out our video on Instagram or Facebook on how to manage cravings if they arise.
Setting goals
Setting realistic goals that you want to achieve is a great way to see your progress and not stretch yourself too far. Goals are flexible and can change depending on what you want and need.
Dry January is a great initiative, but it can be hard. If you don’t want to, or can’t manage to stay completely abstinent, try just cutting back on the amount and frequency you drink, you can do this by setting small achievable goals every day. It’s important to go at your own pace and not judge yourself if you slip up.
Think about the benefits
Try to take note of any improvements to your mental and physical health, or to your bank account! Benefits aren’t always super visible right away, but they can be a great motivator for keeping tabs on your drinking.
Switch up the vibe
If you usually go to the pub to drink with friends, why not explore other ways to have fun like going for a walk, watching a movie, or hosting a games night with a fridge full of non-alcoholic beers?
Nolo (no/low alcohol) alternatives are a great way to keep track of your drinking. If you still fancy heading to your local, try switching to a nolo drink. Some people find that alternating between alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks makes it easier to cut back.
If clubbing, open mics or hiphop is your jam why not check out Sober Spaces or other sober and sober-curious events in your city.
Skimping on drinking doesn’t mean skimping on a good time!
Take your time
For many, cutting down or stopping drinking is a gradual process, it’s important to make the changes you want to and feel capable of making.
Change can be challenging and progress isn’t always linear. If you’ve started 2025 with Dry or Damp January, taking things day by day, and not pushing yourself too hard is the best way to sustain the changes you’ve made so far.
Having self-compassion can make it easier to maintain the goals you’ve set and help you build a balanced relationship with alcohol in the long run.
Access Support
Worried about your drinking? Take our Drinking Quiz. Or if you want to access some support around your alcohol use, click below to book an appointment with our Alcohol Team.
Warning: If you are dependent* on alcohol, stopping drinking can be dangerous. If you think you may be dependent, seek support around how to cut down safely.
*Signs of alcohol dependency include drinking every day, waking up feeling sweaty, anxiuos and shaking and needing to drink to make those symptoms go away.
We’ve had a lot to celebrate this year, from the micro-elimination of Hepatitis C to the 10-year anniversary of Creative Communities, all of our staff and volunteers have worked tirelessly to make BDP’s 38th year a great one!
So join us while we take a deep dive into 2024 at BDP…
The Loop Drug Checking Service
We kicked off the year with the introduction of our monthly Drug Checking Service in collaboration with The Loop. This service has provided the Bristol community with an opportunity to test their substances and contribute to the growing picture of the drug supply in the city.
Getting the opportunity to work with The Loop and provide Bristol with a Drug Checking Service for the entirety of 2024 has proved massively valuable for both our service users and for those who have never accessed our service before.
With each substance submitted, a harm-reduction intervention is delivered to the individual based on The Loop’s growing web of results. This advocates for a more tailored, person-centred harm reduction message to be spread, helping keep people who use drugs safer.
Want to learn more about drug testing? Click here.
Dentaid
In collaboration with dental health charity Dentaid, we’ve been running dental appointments for people engaged in BDP services from our location in Brunswick Square. Participants received a check-up, could talk to a dentist about any issues they were having and had emergency procedures, including fillings and extractions as needed.
This year we had 108 patients, 464 treatments, 79 extractions, 36 fillings! That’s a lot of teeth!
This collaboration with Dentaid allows our service users to access dental healthcare, something that may not be possible without access to this service. We extend a huge thanks to Dentaid for their efforts this year.
Transformation Project
In 2024 we introduced our Transformation Project, adding two new services to BDP.
We launched a Primary Care Assessment Team. People often approach their GP as a first step to getting support around their drug and alcohol use, our new team makes this process more accessible and helps our service users into treatment quicker. We also offer 1-2-1 support with our new Alcohol Team for people wanting to make changes to their alcohol use.
Since April we’ve had over 1000 referrals into our new services. This new pathway has made accessing treatment meaningfully more accessible, and has allowed us to reduce waiting times by 94%!
This is a huge step forward in the support we can offer our service users. The capacity that our new teams and new members of staff provide has made BDP a more accessible and integrated service across the board.
Want to book an appointment with our Alcohol Team? Click here.
Alcohol Quiz
We introduced a 3-question alcohol quiz on our website this year, taken from the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test (AUDIT), a standardised measure created by the World Health Organisation that helps people identify risks with their alcohol consumption.
Over 2000 people have completed the quiz, with 76% found to be drinking at a potentially harmful level.
Having access to an online tool where people can assess their level of drinking is a useful way to initiate some reflection on their relationship with alcohol – if this is something they want to do.
Our quiz then directly leads to our booking system where someone can book an appointment with our Alcohol Team to begin to make those changes they want to make.
In April this year, we planted a tree in Brunswick Square just outside our offices in memory of Maggie Telfer OBE. Maggie was one of the founding members of our organisation and was the CEO for 36 years until her untimely passing at the start of 2023.
The event was organised by Maggie’s family and was attended by BDP staff, trustees, friends and colleagues from other organisations around Bristol.
The tree is a Crimson Cloud Hawthorne that will blossom in a rather fitting pink flower when mature enough, and is getting bigger by the day!
Want to read more about Maggie’s tree? Click here.
Naloxone
Distributing naloxone is a huge part of our service. It is a medication that can temporarily reverse the effects of an opioid overdose, giving emergency services more time to respond.
This year we have distributed a total of 2,379 naloxone kits (1,813 Prenoxad – injectable naloxone, 566 Nyxoid – nasal naloxone).
We also provide naloxone training for anyone who may work with, support, or interact with people who use drugs. This year we have trained over 800 individuals to be able to identify an opioid overdose and administer naloxone. Training as many people as possible is even more impactful for the community given the rise in synthetic opioids over the last few years.
Naloxone Saves Lives, and our ability to roll out kits and training all year round has been instrumental in ensuring we minimise overdose risk among people who use opioids.
This year we had the pleasure of working with The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine to distribute Safer Inhalation Pipes to our service users as part of some research into risks associated with smoking crack cocaine.
After a couple of months in the dark, we received a letter of comfort to confirm that we were allowed to continue to distribute Safer Inhalation Pipes outside of the parameters of the study!
We hope that by providing our service users with a safer alternative with which to smoke crack, we continue to increase harm-reductive conversations around drug use, facilitating a stronger relationship and sense of trust and connection between BDP and its service users.
Want to know more about our crack pipes? Click here.
Funding, Food And More Funding!
2024 has been a year for giving! Feeding Bristol have graced us with funding for food parcels, pressure cookers, and cooking workshops throughout the calendar year.
We received almost £15,000 in total from Feeding Bristol which has been split between our M32 Youth Group, Women’s Morning, and Fifty Plus.
With the ability to engage our service users with practical culinary skills and a take-home free hot meal, the cookers have been a great addition to the Fifty Plus Group’s activities… And it makes our kitchen smell delicious!
Our M32 Youth Group have also had a wonderful year of culinary adventures. Not only has the Feeding Bristol fund provided our young people with food parcels, but this year M32 collaborated with Coexist Community Kitchen where they were taught how to cook tasty meals to take home! Nadu also lent a helping hand in providing a hot meal for our young people, with a free Sri Lankan spread at their restaurant across the road from our offices!
But the food fun-ding doesn’t stop there!
Our green-fingered gardening group received £20,000 from the National Lottery this year to ripen their opportunities in BDP’s allotment. In addition to working wages, the grant will help expand all elements of the allotment to give its members more crops, more capabilities and more food.
We extend a huge thanks to the organisations and businesses who have supported us this year, without whom, these opportunities would not be possible.
Roll up! Roll up! The Creative Communities Gala is here! What a great success it was. We marked this milestone in October with a sold-out night of performances at Circomedia in the heart of St. Pauls.
The evening was filled with spine-tingling acappella, orchestral arrangements, and performances of epic songs ranging from John Williams to Cat Stevens, alongside hip-hop, poetry, a funk medley, and a show-stopping, co-written finale that combined spoken word and movement.
The gala showcased the talents and journeys of our members through performances from Rising Voices Choir, Bristol Recovery Orchestra, Oi Polloi Theatre Group, Changing Tunes Beginners Group, Hip Hop Garden, Recovery in Motion, and Bristol Sober Spaces.
We want to extend a massive thank you to everyone who attended, performed, facilitated, or volunteered, each of you helped make the evening truly special.
We released a series of videos in collaboration with the university with tips and tricks on staying safe on a night out. You can view all the videos on The Drop’s Instagram account.
We’ve also handed out over 120 Reagent testing kits this year! This is a great way to engage students, make them aware of our services, and give them the opportunity to test their substances.
Are you a student who wants support? Click here to book an appointment.
Hepatitis C Micro-Elimination
The whole organisation have pulled together this year to test our service users for Bloodborne Viruses (BBVs).
In an effort to work towards our micro-elimination target, we’ve had a strong focus on Hepatitis C and it’s been our best year for testing yet.
In 2024 we’ve done over 1050 BBV tests! That’s more than last year… and the year before… and more than twice as many as 2019!
All this testing led to us reaching micro-elimination of Hep C in Bristol! This is a massive achievement for BDP, for Bristol and more importantly for our service users, many of whom are very vulnerable and find accessing health care services extremely challenging.
We extend a huge thank you to everyone at BDP for helping achieve this! Special shout out to our Shared Care Team, our Hepatitis C Engagement Worker Georgia and our BBV Nurse Jess.
Want to read more about micro-elimination? Click here.
Thank you to our Volunteers!
Our volunteers form a huge part of BDP. Their commitment to the cause, dedication to our service users and passion for support help the wheels of BDP go round.
We’re proud to have recruited hundreds of amazing volunteers over the last 31 years. Their contribution to our service is instrumental; we couldn’t do what we do without them.
Don’t just take it from us, hear from a volunteer themselves:
“Volunteering at BDP is a life-changing experience. You learn so much about others (and yourself), develop so many life skills and knowledge, and are part of the heart of the Bristol community and a team like no other. It can’t be condensed into words. If you’re thinking about volunteering, go for it.”
“2024 has been a huge year for BDP. We’ve hosted the UK’s first city-centre drugs checking service with The Loop, celebrated ten years of our Creative Communities, rolled out Safer Inhalation Pipes, launched a new peer-led group in our 50+ service, been involved in 6 research projects and continued to deliver high quality, compassionate services across Bristol. We’ve also faced challenges as a community. Drug related deaths are continuing to rise across the UK and we have seen the impact of nitazenes in Bristol. Our yearly celebration of life service was a stark reminder of the lives that have been lost to alcohol and other drugs this year and a reminder that we need to keep fighting to deliver services that keep people safe, reduce harm and enable people to make the changes they want to make in their life.
2025 will be a year of change for us. Anna Smith, our CEO, is moving on from BDP and her passion for Bristol and developing services will be missed. In April, we will launch a new drug and alcohol treatment system alongside a new partnership, which we are extremely excited about. We aim to listen more to people who use our services, allow ourselves to be challenged and alongside our communities, continue to find new ways to be there for the people who need us.”
Thank you from us!
Thanks to everyone who has worked for or alongside us this year to make it one of our strongest yet. We’re excited to see what the future holds as we continue to pioneer with, support and champion people who use drugs.
See you in 2025!
Please see below for our opening times over the holiday period.
Any questions or concerns regarding our services and/or opening times please contact us.
BDP General Opening Times:
Christmas Eve (24/12/2024):
9am – 1pm (Advice Centre)
Christmas Day (25/12/2024):
Closed
Boxing Day (26/12/2024)
Closed
New Year’s Day (01/01/2025)
Closed
Groups:
Fifty Plus:
Breaks Up
Returns
20th December
Either 2nd or 3rd January (TBC)
Women’s Morning:
Breaks Up
Returns
18th December
8th January
PRISM:
Breaks Up
Returns
19th December
2nd January
University Service:
Breaks Up
Returns
19th December
2nd January
Wet Clinics:
Emmanuel Meeting House:
Breaks Up
Returns
17th December
7th January
The Wild Goose Drop-In Centre:
Breaks Up
Returns
18th December
8th January
St Francis Centre:
Breaks Up
Returns
19th December
2nd January
Creative Communities:
Bristol Recovery Orchestra:
Breaks Up
Returns
9th December
6th January
Rising Voices Choir:
Breaks Up
Returns
18th December
7th January
Recovery in Motion:
Breaks Up
Returns
10th December
28th January
Oi Polloi:
Breaks Up
Returns
6th December
15th January
BDP is happy to announce that we have received funding from Feeding Bristol to provide food parcels to our service users.
Feeding Bristol supports vulnerable communities in Bristol facing food insecurity, and for many of our service users, food insecurity is a reality they face every day.
Times are hard for everyone at the moment, particularly around winter. Many of the people we support often have to choose where they spend their money, so being able to provide them with weekly nutritious food parcels alleviates some stress around these choices, while providing them with a well-balanced and healthy meal!
The funding will be shared between 50 Plus, Women’s Morning, and M32 Youth Group, and will provide essential food parcels to our service users who are affected by the rising cost of living and food inequality.
“The food parcels give us things that we otherwise would not be able to afford… We have been coming for about 10-15 years and the group is still the highlight of our weeks!”
We extend enormous thanks to Feeding Bristol, without whom this opportunity would have not been possible.
Click here to learn more about Feeding Bristol and the work they do.
