South East

Medway Treatment and Recovery Service – RIVER

Service delivered in the community

RIVER (which stands for Responsive, Inspirational, Visible, Empowering and Recovery-Oriented) helps people that have issues with drugs and/or alcohol and want to make a positive change. We also support the family and friends of people who are worried about their loved one's substance use.

Who we help

Our service is for people who:

Are aged 18+; and
Live in the Medway area; and
Have issues with drugs and/or alcohol or are impacted by the drug/alcohol use of a loved one (even if that loved one is not ready to get support themselves)

Where we are

37-39 Balmoral Rd, Gillingham ME7 4NT

We have moved (March 2024)

From March 2024, RIVER Treatment and Recovery Service will be delivered from Kingsley House at 37-39 Balmoral Road, Gillingham.

This move places the RIVER service right at the heart of the Medway community — we’re directly opposite Gillingham train station — making us more accessible for clients and allowing us to reach and support more people right across the Medway.

Our service provision won’t change. People with drug and alcohol issues can still access all of the help and support they are used to, and more.

After the move, we will continue to offer our daily provision from AMAT at 411 High Street, Chatham, as well as from satellite services in Rochester.

How we help

The support we offer is tailored to each person’s needs, so will look slightly different for everyone. When you first get in touch, we’ll do an assessment with you to understand what your needs are so we can offer you the most appropriate support.

Services we offer include:

One-to-one support
Group programmes
Harm minimisation, including health checks, testing for blood-borne viruses and provision of naloxone
Needle exchange service
Prescribing services
Referrals to rehab centres and detox provision
A recovery service, provided by our partners Open Road
Peer support
Family support
Outreach
Referrals to other services

Our services don’t stop there. We’re here with ongoing support. We can help you, whatever your drug or alcohol issues, or those of a loved one, are.

Opening times

Opening times for the main hub are as follows:

Mondays: 10am – 12:30pm and 5pm – 8pm
Tuesdays: 10am – 5pm
Wednesdays: 10am – 5pm
Thursdays: 10am – 8pm
Fridays: 10am – 5pm

Get in touch

If you are worried about your own or someone else’s drug and/or alcohol use and want to get help, we’re here. Please use whatever option you feel most comfortable with.

Email: Medway@forwardtrust.org.uk or theforwardtrust.medway@nhs.net
Telephone: 0300 123 1560 (Monday 9:30am – 8pm, Tuesday and Wednesday 9:30am – 5pm, Thursday 9:30am – 8pm, Friday 9:30am – 5pm)
In-person: drop by the main Hub and have a chat: 4 Kingsley House, 37-39 Balmoral Road, Gillingham.

Make a referral

If you are worried about your own drug and/or alcohol use, please complete the referral form below:

COMPLETE A SELF REFERRAL

If you are a health professional or practitioner and concerned about someone else’s drug and/or alcohol use, please complete the professional referral form below:

COMPLETE A PROFESSIONAL REFERRAL

If you work in the criminal justice system and are concerned about someone else’s drug and/or alcohol use, please complete the criminal justice referral form below:

COMPLETE A CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFERRAL

You can also download our referral form and, once complete, send it via email to the secure address listed in the form.

DOWNLOAD THE REFERRAL FORM

Pharmacy

If you need to complete a pharmacy incident report, please complete a digital incident report using the link below.

MAKE AN INCIDENT REPORT