Family Drug and Alcohol Courts face threat of closure despite proven success

Family Drug and Alcohol Courts (FDACs), which support parents with substance misuse issues during care proceedings, are at risk of closure following the withdrawal of central government funding. The model has been praised for delivering strong outcomes for children and families, yet its future now depends on local authority budgets already under pressure.

FDACs were established in 2008 as a specialist branch of the family courts. They take a problem-solving approach — combining judicial oversight with therapeutic, multidisciplinary support to help parents address substance misuse and other challenges that place children at risk.

Unlike standard care proceedings, the same judge works with each family throughout, supported by social workers, psychologists and substance misuse specialists.

Independent evaluations by the Nuffield Foundation and NatCen show FDACs consistently achieve better outcomes than traditional court processes:

📊 Key findings:

• Parents in FDAC are four times more likely to stop misusing substances by the end of proceedings (33.6% vs 8.1%).
• Children are over four times more likely to be reunified safely with their parents (52% vs 12%).
• FDAC cases have fewer contested hearings and reduced expert costs, making them more efficient.
• Economic modelling indicates that every £1 invested may save around £3 through reduced care and court costs.

Despite these results, only a small proportion of families in care proceedings — estimated at around 2% nationally — currently have access to an FDAC.

Judges and practitioners have voiced concern about the potential loss of the model:

• Lord Justice Peter Jackson has called FDAC “the most successful innovation in family justice in two generations.”
• The family law organisation Resolution described threats to the FDAC National Unit as “deeply concerning,” warning that vital expertise could be lost.
• A report from the FDAC National Unit in 2024, The Case for Investment, warned that several courts have already closed and that more could follow without stable national coordination.

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said that decisions to operate FDACs “are made locally” but confirmed that the department “continues to monitor the evidence on effective practice.”

FDACs are non-statutory and depend on local authority and NHS commissioning. With councils under intense financial strain, sustainability is uncertain. Some sites have closed in recent years, and others are operating with reduced staff or limited coverage.

Without renewed national funding, the network of FDACs may contract further — despite strong evidence of improved family outcomes and long-term savings. Sector leaders continue to call for a multi-year settlement to secure the model’s future and maintain access for families in need.