We Are With You
Argyll and Bute Council · 4 November 2025
Back to Bute and Cowal Area Community Planning Group — 4 November 2025 and its agenda
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Overview: Community Links & Drug and Alcohol Services Cowal Community Planning Partnership November 2025
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With You Provide 2 Services in Cowal Community Links: Based in GP practices, providing social prescribing services. Drug and Alcohol Service: Supporting anyone affected by drug or alcohol use to make a change. In 2024 withyou services in Argyll & Bute received a total of 1088 referrals.
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Community Links 21 GP Surgeries in Argyll and Bute
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Community Link Workers are based in 6 GP surgeries in Cowal: ● Dr Hall and Partners ● Cowal Medical Practice ● Church Street Medical Practice ● Riverside Medical Practice ● Strachur Medical Practice ● Kyles Medical Centre
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What does the Community Link Worker Service Do? Referrals taken from primary care CLW will support clients with non medical issues affecting health & Wellbeing CLW provides psychosocial interventions & Connects people with support or services to meet their needs CLW connects with services in the local community to understand local provision
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Community Link Work is: ● using evidence based interventions, measuring impact and based on partnership working ● promoting self management and health behaviour change, using one to one and group approaches and community or online resources
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Our Commissioning Team ● Dr Jenny Dryden- is the lead commissioner for our service and is part of the Health Improvement Team within Argyll and Bute HSCP. ● Our impact and outcomes are fed into the Primary Care Modernisation Board that meets quarterly. Purpose of Link Working ● Social prescribing options within primary care ● Reduce pressure on primary care dealing with non medical issues ● Support groups experiencing health inequalities
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Background to Community Link Working: 2015 - Pilot by Scottish Government Glasgow, Dundee and Inverclyde 2018 - New GP Contracts agreed Primary Care improvement plan - Community Link Workers are one of 6 strands designed to reduce workload and burden on GP Practises Funding given to every Health and Social Care Partnership and rolled out across Scotland There is now a national Workforce - more than 200 and a national network of link workers. Social Prescribing is a globally recognised approach
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The Community Links Service in Numbers: Service Started in December 2021 Service expanded to include rural practices in Dec 2024 With over 2000 referrals to the service over this time 01st April 2024-01st April 2025 105 people were referred in Cowal Main Reasons for referral in Cowal are: Mental Health & Wellbeing, Stress Management and Financial Advice
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Outcomes: We use the Short Warwick Edinburgh Wellbeing Scale to understand how our service performs. In Cowal we got data from 72% of people who chose to take up the service. 96% of whom had an improvement in their wellbeing.
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Social Prescribing in Cowal: Social Prescribing relies on a dynamic and effective third sector to support people to access essential services for their health and wellbeing: Such as Womens Aid & Rape Crisis Carers and Young Carers Centre Citizens Advice, & Welfare Rights Lomond and Argyll Advice & Advocacy Service Dunoon Bothy, Bullwood Nature Trail and the Mens Shed.
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Challenges influencing Health Inequalities: Poverty and low incomes Poor transport connections Having to access services in Glasgow on a low income Limited access to diverse employment opportunities and support when unwell
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Drug & Alcohol Service
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Who can use the service? Anyone affected by their own or someone else's drug or alcohol use. Referrals come from individuals, third sector and statutory Partners. 401 people were referred to the service in 2024 across Argyll and Bute.
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What does the Service Provide? Our offices in Dunoon based in Ballochyle House, but workers will meet people at home or in the community to suit their needs. People can access: ● 1-1 support and psychosocial interventions to help people identify and implement change ● Group Work ● Support for friends and family ● Needle exchange ● Support to access residential rehabilitation
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Needle Exchange and Harm Reduction: ● Trained staff will talk through the different equipment options available to you and give you a demonstration on safer injecting techniques. ● pick up free needles and barrels ● return used equipment ● pick up naloxone kits ● click and collect the equipment y
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Intensive Pre and Post Residential Rehabilitation Support: ● Support you to prepare for and complete a stay within residential rehabilitation services ● Support to sustain recovery back in the community
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New Developments: ● WithYou will be opening a new building in Rothesay funded by ADP and in partnership with the wider community to provide a recovery focused space. ● Nitazine testing kits available from Oct as part of the harm reduction work ● In the New Year, we will be making the upstairs meeting rooms in Ballochyle house, Dunoon, available for community use and we are keen to work with anyone from the CPP who could help us in making plans for this
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Need for diverse Alcohol & Drug Services in Cowal: ● The reported average of adults self-reporting to consume hazardous/ harmful amounts of alcohol was 32% for men and 15% for women in Argyll and Bute (broadly the same as Scotland wide) approx 14,000 men and 6,500 women ● Cowal and Bute have a higher level of hospital admission for alcohol related harms than the Scottish average and for elsewhere in Argyll and Bute,
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● The rate of drug related hospital admissions and drug related deaths in Argyll and Bute has steeply increased in the last 5 year period but is below the Scottish average ● There is a clear socio-economic gradient with alcohol and drug-related admission rates known to increase with area deprivation Source: Joint Strategic Needs Assessment Argyll and Bute HSCP 2024
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Particular needs in Cowal for people with substance use issues: Our Outcome Star data shows that people using alcohol and drugs in Argyll and Bute say that the things that are most difficult in their life are poor emotional health and lack of meaningful use of time.
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Community Assets which would improve outcomes for people across Cowal: ● Free access to physical exercise ● Free public transport ● Integrated provision of alcohol and drug support / employability support / money advice support / wellbeing support
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When I was discharged from rehab after lapsing I didn't know what to do. I was homeless and had no money. My worker came over right away and supported me to get housing and a crisis grant. Thanks to all the work he did I have now been sober for 9 months" — With you client
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How to contact Community Links Service: argyllbutelinks@wearewithyou.org.uk Team Lead: Rachel McLean. rachel.mclean@wearewithyou.org.uk How to contact Drug & Alcohol Service in Dunoon: Ballochyle House, Kirk Street Dunoon, PA23 7DP 01369 704406 Service Manager: Yvonne McLeod Yvonne.McLeod@wearewithyou.org.uk
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For further information: Social Prescribing Information via Voluntary Health Scotland: https://vhscotland.org.uk/a-momentous-three-weeks-for-health-creation-i n-scotland Initiatives showing how to increase community engagement and promote meaningful use of time: https://newstarthighland.org