Quote from a bereaved mum saying "I wish this service had been in place before my beloved son lost his life through a drug overdose...People can be encouraged and supported to change their lives if they are accessing a service that does not drive drug using undergound"

Safer Drug Consumption Facility

Glasgow's Safer Drug Consumption Facility is called 'The Thistle' and opened on Monday 13 January 2025.

Glasgow City Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP), NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHSGGC) and other partners have worked to develop the first Safer Drug Consumption Facility (SDCF) in Scotland and the United Kingdom.

SDCFs are supervised healthcare settings where people can inject drugs, obtained elsewhere, in the presence of trained health and social care professionals in clean, hygienic environments. The service aims to reduce the negative impact that injecting outdoors has on local residents, communities and businesses, reduce the harms associated with injecting drugs on individuals and support people to access help to improve their lives. The Thistle is the first of its kind in the UK. You can watch the BBC documentary featuring The Thistle.

Are you interested in finding out more about The Thistle?

Everyone is welcome to visit The Thistle. We’re organising visits and they’ll include a short tour of the service and you can also learn about what we offer and our goals. You will also have the chance to ask any questions you may have about the service. See below for dates of the visits. 
We're particularly keen to invite local residents to visit The Thistle and we'll do our best to accommodate you if you live locally. Please let ggc.thistle@nhs.scot know your postcode when booking. 
If you are a student journalist, the Alcohol and Drug Partnership are hosting regular briefing sessions. To book your place, contact: adp@glasgow.gov.uk. You can also read the latest press release from 4 March 2025.

To ensure we protect the privacy of people using our service, visits are arranged before our service opens at 9am. We would kindly ask that you do not take photos or recordings during the visit. If you need any, you can get them from our press office. 

Dates of visits

Visits will take place between 8am and 9am (before the service opens at 9am) on the following dates:

  • Thursday 31 July - fully booked
  • Thursday 14 August - fully booked
  • Thursday 4 September - fully booked
  • Thursday 11 September - fully booked
  • Thursday 25 September - fully booked
  • Thursday 9 October
  • Thursday 23 October
  • Thursday 6 November
  • Thursday 20 November
  • Thursday 4 December
  • 18 December 

If you would like to book a place on one of these visits, please email: ggc.thistle@nhs.scot. We are particularly keen to invite local residents to visit The Thistle and we'll do our best to accommodate you if you live locally. Please let ggc.thistle@nhs.scotknow your postcode when booking. 
If you are a student journalist, the Alcohol and Drug Partnership are hosting regular briefing sessions. To book your place, contact: adp@glasgow.gov.uk.


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