- Community substance misuse service
Archived: Southwark Adult Substance Misuse Service
Assessment report published 23 June 2026
Contents
Ratings
Our view of the service
Change Grow Live (CGL) Southwark is part of the larger Change Grow Live provider, who deliver a not-for-profit drug and alcohol treatment service nationally. CGL Southwark operates across 2 hubs located in Southwark (Camberwell Road, and Amelia Street).
The Southwark service offers specialist community-based support for adults and young people affected by substance misuse in the borough. It works collaboratively with local partners including the NHS (National Health Service), social services, probation, GPs (General Practitioners) and pharmacies to deliver integrated care.
Overall, we found that people received good quality care and support. People, carers and partner agencies consistently described staff as caring, professional and committed to improving outcomes. People told us they felt supported, respected and involved in decisions about their care. We observed effective multidisciplinary working and found examples of partnership working, innovation and service development.
We identified some areas requiring improvement. We found breaches of Regulation 12 (Safe care and treatment), Regulation 16 (Receiving and acting on complaints), Regulation 17 (Good governance) and Regulation 18 (Staffing). These related to gaps in some mandatory and specialist training, inconsistent supervision, weaknesses in complaints oversight and delays in reviewing risks through governance processes. Whilst leaders had recognised some of these issues and action was being taken to address them, governance systems had not always identified or addressed concerns in a timely way.
Despite these concerns, we found that people were able to access support when they needed it, staff worked effectively with partner organisations, and outcomes for people using the service were generally positive.
Mental Capacity Act Compliance.
100% of staff had had training in the Mental Capacity Act. This was eLearning and included Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards.
The provider had a policy on the Mental Capacity Act. Staff were aware of the policy and had access to it.
Staff took all practical steps to enable people to make their own decisions. Where there were concerns about a client's understanding, records showed contact had been made with mental health services, and safeguarding referrals had been made for individuals who were being taken advantage of.
For people who might have impaired mental capacity, staff assessed and recorded capacity to consent appropriately. Staff assessed people’s capacity to consent to their treatment at point of assessment for the service. There was a prompt sheet for staff to follow, which included people’s ability to understand the information, retain the information, weigh up the information and communicate their decision.