The history of Druglink

In August 1984 the West Herts. Misuse Consultative Committee was established. Through this group the pilot-befriending project began. This project was to be known as Druglink (West Herts.).

The following year Druglink established a presence at Trefoil House and in 1986 officially registered as a charity. The Elms became the second site in April 1988.  It was first operated as a community detoxification centre and then in 1989 it became the centre for assistance with prescription drugs.

1991 saw the opening of Nascent House, a substance misuse rehabilitation centre and the core of the charity’s aims and objectives. Since 1991 Druglink has continued to create services based around the prevention, treatment of and recovery from substance misuse issues.

In 2007 we began a pilot project with Hertfordshire Police with an aim to reduce binge drinking in the county. After a successful trial period Druglink Diversion was created. The service now works with 16 Police Forces across the UK offering alcohol and drug diversion educational schemes. Alongside working with Police Forces, we now offer e-learning courses on a range of topics related to substance use.

As reintegration is so vital for wellbeing & relapse prevention, in 2011 we set up Coffee Ethic. Coffee Ethic provides fair trade coffee, tea, hot chocolate and snacks and offers those in recovery the chance to learn new skills and build confidence through a programme of training and personal development.

Druglink have operated Nascent House, a nine bed residential rehabilitation facility in Hemel Hempstead for a number of years. It previously offered a single treatment programme lasting three to six months for clients referred with problematic substance misuse issues. In 2014, having been open for nearly 30 years, Nascent House was considered to be old and ‘tired’. The building was in need of refurbishment and the therapy programme needed updating. We undertook a £30,000 make-over, redesigning the facility and therapy programme to ensure we could deliver the most  up-to-date and effective residential rehabilitation service.

Our residential rehabilitation service was renamed 'Oxygen Recovery' and it has been designed to meet the needs of any client suffering from substance misuse issues at any point of their treatment journey, from dependence and addiction through to re-integration into normal living.