Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps the Government is taking to provide support and assistance to the families of chronic alcoholics.

Health and Wellbeing Boards bring together councils, the National Health Service and local communities to understand local needs and priorities, which are expressed in the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment. This should include the need for support to families of those in alcohol treatment.

Public Health England has funded the “Alcohol and other Drug use: The Roles and Capabilities of Social Workers” guidance which sets out the key roles for social workers in relation to substance misuse.

One of the social workers’ three key roles is “to motivate people to consider changing their problematic substance using behaviour and support them (and their families and carers) in their efforts to do so”.

The 2014 Care Act also makes provision for carers to be entitled to an assessment to have their needs met.