Drugs - the power of co-production & lived experience

Fearless is Crimestoppers’ youth service, aimed at young people aged 11 – 18. 

All Fearless Scotland campaigns are co-produced by young people, for young people. This provides a crucial perspective on the messaging that should be contained within the campaign and the overall tone that will be most appealing to young people.

When it came to drugs, young people were clear: they wanted to hear from experts - experts by or thorough lived experience. They felt that nobody ever talked about the people who made it through to the other side.

Drug misuse in Scotland is most often discussed in the context of record drug deaths, prison sentences and harm. What about recovery? Was that a possibility?

Young people told us that with a belief that their friend could recover, they were more likely to speak up to get them help or to report the drug gangs exploiting them. HOPE was needed.

By creating a non-stigmatising campaign with the possibility of recovery at the heart of it, you motivate people to want to take positive steps to protecting and helping individuals most impacted.

Lived experience 

Working with lived experience Peer Mentors from criminal justice services The VOW Project and Positive Outcomes Programme (POP), Fearless produced a video podcast that was shared to young people across Scotland in short clips on Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok.

Reflecting on their own personal stories of recovery, the Mentors spoke of their journeys and how they now help others through substance misuse and the criminal justice system.

From left to right - Kevin from The VOW Project, Pat and Eddie from POP

Kevin, a Peer Mentor at The VOW Project based in Edinburgh, said on the podcast:

“My rock bottom should have killed me. Don't wait until you hit your rock bottom. You might not survive your rock bottom. Take action now. Learn from my mistakes - don't wait to learn from yours.”

Speaking about the charity’s promise of 100% anonymity, Donald, another Peer Mentor at The VOW Project, said:

“It's not about sticking people in - it's about saving people's lives. It's about helping people and supporting people and trying to get them out of that.”

Pat, a Peer Mentor at the Positive Outcomes Project in Glasgow, said:

“I've been in recovery for years now and I see other guys, younger guys get in recovery. It doesn't matter what walk of life you come from, what background you come from and no matter how far down the scale you have went...Recovery is open to anybody.”

In addition to the social media campaign, Fearless ran outreach events in cities across Scotland and published a series of substance misuse themed blogs on our website for adults who look after or work with young people from the Child and Young People’s Centre for Justice (CYCJ) and The DSM Foundation.

The campaign saw over 26,000 young people swipe to the campaign landing page, where they were able to learn more about the impact of drugs, report information or get support from partner agencies, and we received actionable information about drug manufacturing, supply and child criminal exploitation.