Impact
Benzo Research Project Updates
Benzo Research Project Updates
Our 2022 testimony analysis report was republished by Youth RISE: a global youth-led network advocating for evidence-based drug policies and harm reduction, centring young people in the conversation.
You can see our report on their website here. |
Our Founder, Monica Richards was interviewed as part of an article covering a counterfeit benzo operation gone south. Ben Bryant's article The rise and fall of the Benzo Bros' fake Xanax empire delves into a large-scale counterfeit benzo operation in the context of the broader illicit market, how the pharmaceutical giant Pfizer has responded, and the negative impact this has had on people in the absence of sufficient education or support.
Read the full article here. |
Following the identification of strong synthetic opioids in the UK's illicit benzodiazepine supply, Sky News invited our Founder & Project Lead to speak on behalf of the Benzo Research Project. Monica Richards discusses the motivations behind young people's benzo use, the harms of stigma around drug use when accessing support, and how young people can get help and reduce benzo-related harms.
To watch the full interview, click here. |
Our Founder, Monica Richards' alma mater King's College London reported on her intervention statement at the United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs on 5th December 2023, citing the Benzo Research Project as "ground-breaking"!
To read the full article, click here. |
Our Research co-leads, Joanna and AJ were invited as guest speakers to the London Harm Reduction Reading Group. The meeting, hosted at Release, focused on engaging young people who use drugs with harm reduction: beginning with a presentation from our team, followed by a Q&A discussion.
If you would like to read the paper we discussed, you can find it here. |
Our testimonies were featured in the Mental Health and Drug Use workshop for the University Mental Health Charter (UMHC). This insight-sharing event – hosted by Student Minds – outlined the role universities play in drug policy. The speakers, including our Research team leads Joanna and AJ, alongside Hanna Head (SSDP), highlighted the need for a compassionate, evidence-based, and intersectional approach to drug use on UK campuses.
If you would like to watch the full webinar, please contact us. |
Our Research team co-leads, Joanna Bright and AJ Martin joined an incredible team of prescribers and psychosocial practitioners from NHS Inclusion. Our representatives presented our 2022 report findings. Bringing these together with their team's practical expertise, we began planning a comprehensive, trauma-informed treatment pathway specifically designed for people struggling with benzo dependence.
|
Our Co-Head of Research, Joanna Bright was invited as a guest lecturer by the University of Manchester, representing the Benzo Research Project. Joanna gave a lecture to undergraduate student in the Department of Criminology, presenting our findings from our 2022 testimony analysis report.
|
The Benzo Research Project has become a member of the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO). NCVO is a membership community of over 17,000 charities, voluntary organisations and community groups in England.
Being an NCVO member will allow us to connect with other voluntary organisations, access support and training to continue developing our organisation. |
Our Co-Head of Research, AJ Martin, recently wrote an article titled Benzos are like a box of chocolates: How tough drug laws lead to counterfeit drugs for our partners at Volteface.
AJ writes about how novel benzos – often "never marketed for medical use" – have continued circulating in the illicit drug supply after the Psychoactive Substances Act 2016 and subsequent 2017 amendment to the Misuse of Drugs Act 2017, signifying that the UK government's approach to drugs is "unfit for purpose". To read the full article, click here. |
Crew, our partner and Scottish drug support charity, highlighted our work in their 2021–22 drug trend report. Their report details drug trends and the drivers behind drug-related deaths in Scotland, including the 396% increase in deaths related to 'any benzo' since 2011.
To read the full report, click here. |
Our project lead Monica and Research team co-leads, Joanna and AJ, joined The News Movement and NTIA (Night Time Industry Association) at the House of Commons to speak to MPs about drug policy and the #BringBackDrugTesting campaign. The campaign calls on the Home Office to restore life-saving drugs testing services at festivals across the UK.
|
Hanna Head (SSDP UK) spoke to our project lead Monica and Research team co-leads, Joanna and AJ, to highlight the "evidence-based, life-saving work that students are doing" in harm reduction. The article highlights the work of our project alongside SSDP Imperial, the Help not Harm campaign, and more.
To read the full article, click here. |
Our project and work was featured in an article titled Students present project findings to policy-makers and professionals by Kings College London's News Centre.
|
Following a successful abstract submission, Joanna (Co-Head of Research) presented our report findings at the 16th Annual International Society for the Study of Drug Policy (ISSDP) conference, hosted by RAND Europe in Leuven, Belgium. Other speakers at ISSDP 2023 included international drug policy activists and scholars, criminologists, physicians, medical lawyers, and police commissioners.
You can find our abstract here. |
Julie (Head of Outreach) and Joanna (Co-Head of Research & Outreach) presented our findings at the Substance Misuse Best Practice event in Surrey, hosted by Catch22 Hampshire 24/7. Catch22 is a charity that designed and delivers services from children's social care to health and wellbeing, including a holistic psychosocial, harm reduction, and family support approach to youth substance use.
|
Our research report was featured by The Alliance for Benzodiazepine Best Practices. The group aim to raise awareness about the dangers of benzodiazepine use and to promote safe prescribing practices. You can find their evidence-based resources for prescribers and patients, and various scientific research studies and papers, on their website.
|
Our Co-Head of Research, AJ Martin, wrote a blog article for Drug Science's Science Beats Stigma campaign. In the article, AJ writes about his personal experiences that led to his passion for harm reduction. This passion led him to help create the Imperial chapter of SSDP, and join the Benzo Research Project in summer 2021.
You can read the full article, click here. |
Our Research team co-leads, AJ and Joanna, presented at the Drug Science Street Drugs Discussions on Benzodiazepines. The event was the biggest in the series, with over 700 signups and 350 attendants including psychopharmacologists and NGO leaders. The research team leaders went on to present at the Drug Science symposium to their independent committee. You can watch the recording on YouTube here.
|
Our founder and project lead Monica Richards presented at Imperial College London alongside our adviser Ivan Ezquerra Romano at the Young Leaders in Drug Policy event, hosted by the award-winning ICL SSDP. You can watch the recording on YouTube here.
|
The International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC) re-published our research report! IDPC is a global network advocating for drug policies that advance social justice and human rights.
|
The Benzo Research Project executive team were featured on The News Movement. Our founder and several members of the project were interviewed in two videos: one on why young people are taking benzos, and another on our efforts to change attitudes towards drug policy in the UK.
|
Our project was spotlighted in the Drug Science Student Society Network (SSN) newsletter, sharing some important findings from our report with students across the UK.
|
Drugs and Alcohol Ireland re-published our research report in the Health Research Board (HRB) National Drugs Library. This will ensure our report and the stories shared will be brought to the attention of practitioners and researchers across Ireland. The report also featured in the HRB National Drugs Library e-newsletter volume 18, issue 12.
|
The blog post authored by Joanna Bright (Co-Head of Research) and Zara Nelson (Outreach Officer) was shared by Dovetail. Dovetail is an organisation that provides training to drug and alcohol services in Queensland, Australia with a specific focus on young peoples' services.
|
Our Report Launch and Drug Policy event was shared on the DrugWise Daily newsletter: a news service providing coverage of all things related to the drugs and alcohol sector.
|
The Benzo Research Project was featured on ITV! Check out George Hancorn's article on us, titled Psychoactive drugs being 'sold' to children as young as 15 on Instagram for as little as £1. It's also available in video form on their Instagram, YouTube, and website.
|
Our project was featured in the UK Drug Testing Newsletter by Zoom Testing. Zoom Testing are a small company that supply drug testing kits to the UK.
|
Monica Richards (Founder, Project Lead) was featured in a news article about the Benzo Research Project titled The student-led project aiming to shape national drug policy by King's College London, alongside our King's student members.
|
The Students' Union at UWE Bristol featured the Benzo Research Project on their page about Mixing Drugs and Alcohol, encouraging students with lived experience of benzo use to share their stories.
|
Copyright ©️ 2024 Benzo Research Project
|