A Joint Statement from leading NSW social services organisations
We fundamentally believe in the wholeness, inherent worth and dignity of every human being. We want a society with systems defined by fairness, compassion, dignity and hope.
Every day, our organisations confront inequality. We provide holistic, integrated services to children, young people, families, those living in poverty and experiencing homelessness and the elderly. Together we serve hundreds of thousands of people across NSW.
We also work every day with people who use drugs and experience drug dependency. All people deserve services that best promote their health, wellbeing and connection to the community. Our collective Alcohol and Other Drugs (AOD) service footprint spans from the Uniting Medically Supervised Injecting Centre (MSIC), right through to residential rehabs, AOD day programs, mental health services, outreach, counselling and other supports. Our services touch communities across the state, including in regional and remote areas, promoting better health outcomes and integrated care for all.
As service providers and faith-based organisations, we are looking forward to the opportunity that this Drug Summit presents for the people we serve and our sector. We see the ongoing impact that stigma has on people who use drugs and experience drug dependency and the difficulty in accessing services.
We see an overdose rate that continues to climb across the state, and systems and policies that disproportionately harm the most vulnerable in the community. We are driven by our shared experiences on the frontline, and the stories and experiences of the people we serve.
We are committed to increasing partnerships with individuals who have lived experience and their families to collaboratively develop effective solutions. We are inspired by our shared values to make this statement ahead of the NSW Drug Summit.
Our hopes and expectations are high.
We want the Drug Summit to result in outcomes and solutions that are:
- evidence-based
- health-focused
- align with our values
- keeping people safe
- not perpetuating of stigma and ensure the best outcomes for people, especially
families, young people, First Nations people, people experiencing disadvantage and
rural and regional communities
We look forward to working with the NSW Government to make this happen. The outcomes we would like to see include:
- Greater investment in treatment and harm reduction services so that people can access the support they need when they seek it
- Dignifying, evidence-based and health-focused responses to people’s substance use and dependency
Signed:
Uniting NSW.ACT
The Salvation Army
Wesley Mission
St Vincent De Paul Society NSW
Wayside Chapel
NSW Council of Social Services (NCOSS)
Quotes
“It’s been 25 years since the 1999 Drug Summit. Our communities have waited too long for real
reform and will be hopeful that NSW can become a leader, once again, in fair and sensible drug
policy. This is the moment for the Government to consider and discuss positive, evidence-based changes to our drug laws and the treatment and harm reduction services that will save lives.”
Emma Maiden, Director, Advocacy and External Relations, Uniting NSW.ACT
“The Drug Summit is a window of opportunity to build upon the previous work of the Special
Commission of Inquiry into the Drug Ice, revisit the recommendations and expand on the
commitments. We must take a coordinated systems-based approach to this issue to ensure
the right type of support and service provision is available, at the right time, in the right place for
all members of the wonderfully diverse communities of NSW.”
Andy Biddle, State Manager, AOD Services NSW/ACT, The Salvation Army
“The NSW Government drug summit presents a vital opportunity to address the complex
challenges of substance use and addiction in our communities. Wesley Mission urges the
Government to consider innovative solutions and deliver evidence-based strategies that
prioritise health and harm reduction, while ensuring community safety.”
Rev Stu Cameron, CEO, Wesley Mission
“The NSW drug summit is an opportunity to make a meaningful difference for both individuals,
as well as the community overall, in how we compassionately respond to the impacts of
alcohol and other drugs. We welcome the opportunity to walk alongside the sector and the
NSW Government to ensure that people are able to access support free from stigma, and that
services are resourced to meet the growing need present across the state.”
Yolanda Saiz, CEO, St Vincent de Paul Society NSW
“The timing of the NSW Drug Summit is critical and presents us a unique opportunity to reassess and ensure that the people who are most affected by drug policy are placed at the centre of our conversations. A human-centred approach is vital in bringing us together because these issues impact us all. We should never take a snapshot of a person’s life and call it the whole movie, and no one should ever be condemned by their past, but be given all the support they can, to embrace a new future.”
Jon Owen, Pastor and CEO, Wayside Chapel
“This is a rare opportunity to drive long overdue drug reform in New South Wales. It is critical
that we set ourselves on a path to achieve actionable tangible outcomes which will benefit the
entire community. That requires the NSW Premier to be brave and commit to a comprehensive
Drug and Alcohol Roadmap, along with adequate funding for our under-resourced frontline
service providers which are hanging on by a thread. NCOSS looks forward to working with the NSW Government to deliver holistic and compassionate solutions that put people at the heart of our approach to harm minimisation.” Cara Varian, CEO, NSW Council of Social Services (NCOSS)