Provision of the Cardiff and Vale Substance Misuse Alliance

Our focus will be on creating systemic change: changes to culture, funding structures, commissioning, and provision which will support a new way of working. Together we will aim to create an environment where provider organisations, people with lived experience, and commissioners share responsibility for achieving outcomes and are mutually supportive - learning from each other, and making decisions based on what’s best for people using services. We will work as one, sharing decisions and collective responsibility to achieve our goal of a fully integrated and coordinated Substance Misuse system that focuses on people’s strengths, and supports their whole health and wellbeing. People who have experience of using our services have told us that they need a system whereby they can access harm reduction information and advice easily, and in a way that suits them. Where they might need more than this, they want to only have a single conversation or assessment to access the treatment and support that they need, for as long as they need it, regardless of whether they accessed the system through the health or social care route. When people are accessing a number of different services, they want support to be joined up so that they can discuss their needs holistically and do not have to compartmentalise the issues they are facing. Ours is an ambitious, whole system approach, requiring commitment and determination to deliver positive outcomes for the people of Cardiff and the Vale who need substance misuse services. Our journey has begun, and we want organisations that are committed to the same values and vision to join us on that journey.