The evaluation was commissioned in October 2006 by the Aberlour Child Care Trust on behalf of Aberlour, the Scottish Government, the Dundee City Drug and Alcohol Action Team, the Lloyd’s TSB Foundation Partnership Drugs Initiative and the Dundee City Social Work Department. The research was carried out by Griesbach & Associates.
The stated aim of the Dundee Outreach service is to reduce the impact of problem parental substance use on children and their families. The service works with parents (usually mothers) of children up to age 16, who have been identified as having a drug or alcohol problem. The service also works directly with children. Dundee Outreach includes a separate project, with two members of staff (a family worker and a children’s worker) focused specifically on the Stobswell area of Dundee. This project has the same aim and target population as the wider service, but uses slightly different methods to engage with and support service users.