Join Mike Trace, CEO of The Forward Trust, as he dives deep into the issues that shape our work — from addiction recovery and criminal justice reform to the future of UK drug policy.
With over 40 years’ experience supporting some of the most marginalised people in the UK, Mike brings rare insight into the challenges of prison overcrowding, reoffending, and the systems that drive them.
A former UK Deputy Anti-Drug Coordinator under Tony Blair and architect of the UK’s first National Drug Strategy, Mike shares expert analysis and practical ideas for real change.
Listen and share below — also available on SoundCloud and Spotify.
🚨 Latest release
April 2025
In this episode of the Leading Forward podcast, Mike Trace looks at the continuing rising trends in drug and alcohol related deaths, and tries to understand why the responses still seem inadequate to the challenge.
In his own words, Mike's short video explainer tell us why this is both a vital and compelling subject matter to follow:
Accessibility: Read a transcript of the episode. This is an edited transcript of the episode, prepared for accessibility and readability. The meaning and content are unchanged.
March 2025
We recently published our 2025 Impact Report, which showed another year of expansion and diversification of our services. This podcast describes how our criminal justice, substance misuse, mental health and employment services are helping thousands of people make transformational changes to their lives.
January 2026
Forward Trust CEO Mike Trace looks back on half a century of drug/alcohol residential rehabilitation history, celebrates the tens of thousands of people whose lives have been transformed, and bemoans the continued problems with funding and referral systems that undermine their important work.
December 2026
With the latest annual figures on Drug Testing On Arrest out recently, Mike Trace looks at the history of attempts to identify people with drug or alcohol problems in police stations, and to refer them to appropriate treatment.
Listen to all previous episodes of Leading Forward Podcast below.
