January 12, 2005

“It all started with a remark made by police at a drug and alcohol meeting,” explained Peter Knightingale, from the Kingston drug and alcohol action team (DAAT).

“They had noticed a growth in the use of crack cocaine by people who had been arrested.”

After being alerted to an apparent proliferation of crack use in the borough, Kingston DAAT launched a three-month investigation into the issue.

It found it was easy to buy the drug and a survey of more than 60 youngsters from Kingston Youth Service, aged 13 to 21, revealed 13 per cent had taken crack.

The Cambridge Road estate was named as the prime dealing location and further research showed 40 per cent of users injected rather than smoked the drug.

Few had sought treatment, but addicts believed a dedicated service could help.

Two specialists were brought in. Rob Hudson helped three or four people at a time by providing information to users, supporting those who had been in prison and running one-to-one counselling.

A total of 75 per cent of his clients got clean.

He said: “I do not put pressure on them, but offer support and advice when they made decisions.”

Substantial funds are required to sustain a crack habit and users face arrest, debt and health problems.

Crack is often taken with other substances and the effects of mixing can be unpredictable.

Mr Hutton added: “We try to create awareness of such risks. People experiment, but mixing the drug is dangerous.”

Unlike heroin there is no substitute for crack that can be used to help addicts beat their addiction.

Mr Hutton said: “When people withdraw from crack they have intense cravings and can have very low points and get angry, so support is vital.”

50 YEARS AGO

 January 9, 1965
Lighting the Kingston bypass was one of the first problems the council of the new London borough of Kingston would tackle.
Only parts of the road had lights as various district councils took differing views on whether they would pay the cost.

25 YEARS AGO

 January 12, 1990
Kingston doctors were advised to ignore a letter from a family practitioner group asking them to put a large V next to the names of women patients they knew were virgins.
Appalled women called the idea a “gross infringement of civil liberties”.

The plan was designed to save money on unnecessary smear tests.


10 YEARS AGO 

January 12, 2005
A model railway group named a new carriage after the Surrey Comet because it was thrilled about a grant from the Gannett Company, which owns Newsquest, the Comet’s parent company.
Malden and District Society of Model Engineers received a £2,000 cheque from the company to build the carriage.