Last week we shared an update on some Turning Point Scotland services in Glasgow. We have now been made aware that the Stabilisation Service will close and the Crisis Centre will transition to Glasgow Health and Social Care Partnership. This represents a significant change to the support available in Glasgow.
As the national resource of expertise on substance use, SDF stands in solidarity with our member organisation Turning Point Scotland. We are calling for Glasgow City Council to protect third sector organisations from the unsustainable cost pressures being created by City Properties, so they can focus on delivering life-saving support.
Kirsten Horsburgh, Chief Executive Officer at Scottish Drugs Forum, says:
“It is hard not to feel that the difficult decisions being made by Glasgow Health and Social Care Partnership are driven by the demands of City Properties, rather than by the needs of people who are looking for timely, compassionate support for their drug use. This is deeply concerning, given the scale of drug-related harm experienced by communities across Glasgow.
“At Scottish Drugs Forum, people regularly tell us that Turning Point Scotland’s Stabilisation Service has transformed their lives. Its planned closure is devastating. Rather than seeing Scotland’s only dedicated stabilisation service disappear, we should be investing in support like this in every part of the country. This is a model that has proven its value and should be expanded, not lost.
“While we are relieved that the Crisis Centre will continue under Glasgow Health and Social Care Partnership, the impact of this change to the operating model should not be underestimated. Turning Point Scotland has run the Crisis Centre – the only service of its kind in Scotland – for 30 years. Over that period, it has developed a distinctive third sector approach, combining specialist expertise with the flexibility to build trusted relationships and respond to individual needs. While many of its frontline staff will transfer to the Health and Social Care Partnership, this period of uncertainty will inevitably have an impact on dedicated workers. Three decades of experience, insight and organisational culture cannot simply be transferred to the public sector, and the service will undoubtedly look different when it is brought in-house.
“This situation raises wider questions about the role of the third sector in delivering health and social care. Charities bring specialist expertise, deep understanding of the communities they serve, and ways of working that are difficult to recreate. As Voluntary Health Scotland argues in its manifesto, the third sector must be recognised as an equal partner by the Scottish Government, NHS Scotland and local authorities. Collaboration should be at the heart of our approach to health and social care, ensuring that the strengths of each sector are recognised and valued.
“We call on Glasgow City Council to protect third sector organisations from the pressures being imposed by City Properties. Charities are not able to absorb sudden financial shocks in the way the private sector and larger public bodies sometimes can. The funding they receive is typically restricted to delivering agreed services and outcomes, leaving little or no flexibility to cover unexpected rent increases or substantial dilapidation costs. When these kinds of pressures are imposed, they can quickly become unsustainable, regardless of how valuable or effective a service is.
“This is about more than one organisation or one service. If these are the financial conditions attached to occupying properties managed by City Properties, it raises serious questions for every third sector organisation delivering public services from those buildings. At a time when governments and public bodies increasingly rely on charities to deliver essential health and social care, arrangements that expose organisations to significant and unpredictable property liabilities risk deterring charities from taking on that work in the first place. That would be a loss not just for the third sector, but for the people and communities who depend on these services every day.
“We continue to stand in solidarity with Scottish Drugs Forum member organisation Turning Point Scotland, its staff and everyone who relies on the Stabilisation Service and Crisis Centre.”