Mayor learns about “pathways to recovery”

MAYOR of Warrington Faisal Rashid has met with a group of local people to find out about their journeys to recovery from drug and alcohol addiction.
Cllr Rashid invited service users from the “Pathways to Recovery” drug and alcohol treatment and recovery service to the Town Hall, because he was keen to learn more about their experiences.
He heard  how they were working towards recovery, supported by the “Pathways” service.
The group are following a new programme, launched in March this year, which supports people affected by drug and alcohol misuse. The service is run by Change, Grow, Live (CGL), a multi-agency partnership led by social care and health charity services in Warrington and commissioned by the borough council’s public health team.
The CGL team provides services which focus on recovery and people living healthy and fulfilled lives. It aims to help people become free from drugs and alcohol and also become positive and active members of their community.
A wide range of techniques are used by the team, including psychological interventions, to ensure the overall physical, mental and emotional wellbeing of service users.
The Mayor said: “I attended the launch of the new service back in March and the people taking part in the programme really inspired me. To see how these people are taking steps to deal with their addiction and to come out of it, to see their commitment – it’s marvellous and it needs to be recognised.”
Jamie, one of the service users who met the Mayor, said: “There is a lot of stigma around addiction and we really appreciate the Mayor helping to raise awareness and trying to break the stigma.
“Addiction can happen to anyone. It’s important that people know that your addiction doesn’t define you, you can change, you can grow. It’s been a great experience to talk with the Mayor and highlight how recovery is working in Warrington.”
To find out more about CGL’s service, visit www.changegrowlive.org and type “Pathways to Recovery” into the search box.