In June 2026, we presented SRC’s Women in Recovery work to the Scottish Healthcare in Custody Network — a professional network focused on improving healthcare for people in custody across Scotland.
The session was built around intersectionality: exploring the specific, and often overlapping, needs of women affected by drug and alcohol related harm. For practitioners working in healthcare in custody, the themes we covered — children removed, menopause, domestic abuse, gambling, the justice system and neurodiversity — sit directly at the heart of what they encounter every day.
Where this work began
Scotland’s recovery system was not built with women in mind. When SRC began to examine the evidence in early 2025, that much was clear. A rapid review of 45 papers found only five that were Scotland-specific. Research on recovery has largely focused on men in treatment. And the data makes a stark case: women accounted for 318 of the 1,017 drug misuse deaths recorded in Scotland in 2024 — a third of all deaths — yet their experiences remain poorly understood and poorly served by the systems meant to support them.
That evidence review was our starting point. From there, we created space at our national conference for a dedicated workshop on women’s recovery. We produced a policy synthesis examining how Scotland’s policies support — or fail to support — women in recovery from substance use, trauma and disadvantage. We then brought together more than 170 people from across Scotland to explore six critical themes in depth, and published the results as standalone documents that local services, ADPs, HSCPs and community organisations can use to start conversations and take action.
What the evidence tells us
Across all six themes, the same picture emerges. Women’s experience of substance use is distinct, deeply gendered, and often overlooked in both research and policy. Recovery for women is relational — shaped by trauma, poverty, abuse and caring responsibilities in ways that one-size-fits-all systems are not equipped to address.
Fear of child removal, stigma and lack of childcare block access to support. Women with a history of abuse diagnosed with PTSD are 15 times more likely to engage in daily problematic alcohol or illicit drug use. Half of women in prison report using drugs prior to custody. Neurodivergent women are diagnosed later than men, if at all. Across every theme, the evidence makes the same point: the system is failing women.
The six themes
Each of the six themes is available as a standalone document:
Theme 1 — Women Who Have Had Their Children Removed. Women who have had children removed are left grieving, shamed and stigmatised, with little or no ongoing support. They are 14 times more likely to die prematurely. Children in the poorest areas are 10 times more likely to be removed. This is a crisis hiding in plain sight.
Theme 2 — Women’s Health, Menopause and Drug and Alcohol Harm. 65% of women report using alcohol to manage menopause symptoms; 45% tobacco; 30% sedatives. The intersection between menopause and substance use is almost entirely absent from current service provision and policy.
Theme 3 — Women, Domestic Abuse and Drug and Alcohol Harm. Women with a history of abuse diagnosed with PTSD are 15 times more likely to engage in daily problematic substance use. Domestic abuse, substance use and recovery services must work together far more closely — and most currently do not.
Theme 4 — Women, Gambling and Drug and Alcohol Harm. Gambling is often intertwined with domestic abuse, neurodiversity and substance use, yet is rarely screened for or recognised in women’s services or recovery settings. Intersectionality is crucial here.
Theme 5 — Women, Drug and Alcohol Harm and the Justice System. In 2023–24, 88% of women who received a custodial sentence received a year or less. Half had been using drugs prior to custody. Imprisonment costs £47,140 per person per year; a community sentence costs £5,000. The case for change is both human and economic.
Theme 6 — Women, Neurodiversity and Drug and Alcohol Harm. Around 15% of the population is neurodivergent, but research specifically on women is scarce. Women are diagnosed later than men — if at all — and face substantially higher rates of substance use. Services need to become neuro-inclusive and person-centred in ways that recognise gender.
What needs to change
The evidence points in one direction. Scotland needs to embed gender-specific, trauma-informed services across all sectors. Women-only recovery spaces and housing need to be funded. Recovery must be recognised as a rights-based, relational process. Lived experience must co-design services. And intersectional analysis must be applied — and outcomes tracked.
These are not asks for the future. They are asks for now.
Watch the recording and explore the resources
Watch the recording here – https://vimeo.com/1204205527/50484b7d73?share=copy&fl=sv&fe=ci
Download the presentation slides
All six theme documents — along with the Creating Conversation Guidance and Step-by-Step Guidance and Recording Tool — are free to download at scottishrecoveryconsortium.org/women-in-recovery.
Get involved
The Women in Recovery Research and Practice Network meets regularly to explore issues at the intersection of health and justice. The next meeting is on Thursday 30 July, 1–2pm online. To find out more or connect with the network, contact tracey@scottishrecoveryconsortium.org.
