What matters to people working in drug and alcohol services?

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) commissioned Ipsos to survey people working in drug and alcohol treatment and recovery service delivery and commissioning in England.

DHSC commissioned the survey to generate insights about how to make the sector a more attractive and rewarding place to work. The findings will help to guide implementation of the 10-year workforce strategic plan 2024-2034, which aims to create an expanded, skilled and sustainable drug and alcohol workforce. It will also be used by employers to inform their approach to workforce development.

What the survey revealed

• The workforce is highly motivated by being able to make a difference and help others: 91% say this was an important reason for joining the sector.
• The interesting nature of the work was the next most common motivation for joining the sector, and remained important to respondents in their roles now. Those in regulated roles were particularly likely to comment that they enjoyed working with the specific cohort of people they supported.
• Generally, the workforce feels well supported by colleagues. This is the second most commonly mentioned thing that people like about their jobs (after helping others), and 86% of respondents agree that they get the help and support they need from colleagues.
• Levels of clinical supervision reported by staff fall short of the recommended standard. 45% of people working directly with people who use drugs and alcohol report receiving no clinical supervision. Even among medical, mental health and other regulated professionals, 26% report receiving no clinical supervision.
• The workforce is more likely to report stressful levels of demand than other healthcare workers. More than two in five (43%) of those who work directly with people who use drugs and alcohol say they have too many people on their caseload.
• Pay is the most common challenge faced by the workforce, with 48% saying it is a challenge for them. It is also the most common reason to consider leaving, and top thing that would make people feel more supported.

About the research

The survey aimed to:

• Understand the perceptions and experiences of people working in the local-authority-commissioned drug and alcohol treatment services, local authority commissioning teams and lived experience recovery organisations.
• Identify factors that would make the sector a more attractive and rewarding place to work.

The survey was conducted between 14th November 2024 and 24th January 2025. It collected 2,179 responses from peer support workers, unregulated and regulated frontline workers, managers and administrators, as well as commissioners in the drug and alcohol treatment and recovery workforce.

The report can be found here.  

Webinar

On 15 May and 4 June 2025, findings were presented to the sector by Ipsos and DHSC, featuring Dr Laura Pechey (Programme manager in the alcohol and drug treatment and recovery team, DHSC).  The webinars covered headline findings across the sector, experiences in the workforce and the implications of the survey findings.

A recording of the webinar can be found here.