Adults struggling with drug and alcohol problems will continue to benefit from a treatment service after Harrow Council agreed to support it for another five years.

Its health and wellbeing board received a report on the advantages of the service, which “minimises the impact of substance misuse on individuals and the wider community”.

The report noted that this contributes to reducing health inequalities in Harrow and helps reduce crime and reoffending rates throughout the borough.

It will cost around £8.5 million – running until April 2025 – though the council explained that delivery is “subject to funding”.

Cllr Graham Henson, leader of Harrow Council, repeated that there is a “continued strain on council finances”.

During the previous contract, the council cut the substance misuse service funding by £500,000 which led to a reduction in uptake between 2017/18 and 2018/19.

Bridget O’Dwyer, from Harrow Public Health, said there are plans to develop new ideas, such as utilising an outreach group in Wealdstone, but stressed the importance of this service.

This was supported by Tanya Paxton, borough director for mental health, who pointed out that the problems will not go away but would be transferred to other departments.

“These people still need treatment and, if these services are not there, it just puts more pressure onto mental health services,” she said.

The report showed that the number of drug-related deaths in Harrow has increased, with 19 killed from 2015-17 according to the office for national statistics.

Ms O’Dwyer explained that there have been additional warnings over the impact of fentanyl – a “potent opioid” – that has caused several deaths in North America.

Councils have been advised to prepare for a fentanyl threat in the UK and she said Harrow had created a framework to deal with this.

The service will be contracted out to a voluntary sector provider where users will benefit from both initial treatment and a longer recovery programme.