Nationwide

Change Up

Service delivered in the community

Young adults aged 18-30 who want support to manage their drugs and alcohol use.

Who it’s for:

Young adults aged 18-30 who are seeking a safe online space to seek help to manage their drug and alcohol use.

How we help:

Change Up is an early intervention programme of short one-to-one and group sessions, designed especially for young people, to help them make their own choices about alcohol and drugs in a more informed way.

The aim of Change Up is to provide people who are 18-30 years of age with the opportunity to talk frankly about drugs and alcohol in a safe environment so that they:

Reduce the risks of drinking alcohol or taking drugs
Improve their mental wellbeing
Increase their resilience and self-belief.

Key benefits of participating are:

Getting early support which is tailored to people of this age
Becoming part of a supportive group of peers
Getting answers to questions you were afraid to ask
Finding hope for the future
Having the opportunity to join our Change Up peer-led, online community on FUSE.

The programme consists of an initial one-to-one discussion for each participant followed by eight online group sessions covering specific topics, each one hour long. It ends with a one-to-one discussion for each participant to draw together learning and think about next steps. After this, participants can join our Change Up peer-led community.

You can expect us to run the programme punctually and within the timings agreed up front. We will respect confidentiality and we will only use data about you in ways to which you have given explicit consent beforehand. We will strive to work flexibly to ensure that the programme meets individual needs for example by offering optional sessions on topics of interest suggested by you. We’ll try to keep the sessions interesting, relevant and fun.

In return, we ask that you attend all of the programmed 1:1 and group sessions on time, and have your camera turned on if possible. We would like you to respect the confidentiality of others in the group, for example by being in a quiet place where you cannot be overheard or overseen during online sessions. Your feedback will be very important for ensuring the quality of the programme is maintained and improved, so we ask that you complete all feedback and evaluation forms as the programme progresses.

Availability

Programmes run online every week on Tuesday and Wednesday lunchtimes. We can also run evening groups as long as there are at least five people attending.

How to access:

The best way is to refer yourself

Change Up – Referral Form

Or you can scan this QR code:

Recent service user feedback

“I was worried when there were other people in the group that it would not be as useful for me, but I found it more useful to have others to talk things through with.”

“Change Up offered great support from the group leader as well as the support from the people in the group.”

“Completing the sessions massively changed my life, especially with relationships, giving up my substance use entirely and providing me with support to secure employment, I’d definitely tell friends about the programme.”

“Great support from group leader and people on the group especially after sad news of my grandfather in hospital.”

“Really helpful and understanding – would recommend to anyone in the same position as me.”

“I was worried when there were other people in the group that it would not be as useful for me. But I found it more useful to have others to talk things through with.”

Contact details:

Victoria.baker@forwardtrust.org.uk (Change Up Service Manager)