Professor Dame Carol Black: The Drug Review That Sparked Believe in People

Where Believe in People Began

Believe in People didn’t begin in a studio. It began in a living room.

For our very first episode, we were personally invited to the home of Professor Dame Carol Black in Cambridge to record a conversation about drug addiction, recovery, and stigma. We also explored the system-level change required to reduce harm and save lives.

That moment set the tone for everything that followed. Honest conversations, rooted in lived experience and frontline reality, and unafraid to ask difficult questions about policy, funding, accountability, and what good treatment actually looks like.

This episode is not only the origin story of the podcast. It is also a statement of intent.

Why Dame Carol’s Work Matters

In 2019, Professor Dame Carol Black was commissioned by the Home Office and the Department of Health and Social Care to undertake a two-part independent review of drugs. The review was designed to inform government thinking on what more could be done to tackle the harms caused by drugs.

Part one, published on 27 February 2020, examined drug supply and demand, including the structure of the illicit drugs market and the links between drugs, violence, and organised crime.

Part two, published on 8 July 2021, focused on prevention, treatment, and recovery. Its conclusion was clear. Drug treatment in England was broken, under-resourced, and unable to deliver meaningful recovery at scale without urgent reform.

The review aimed to ensure that vulnerable people affected by substance misuse receive the support they need to recover and rebuild their lives, both in the community and in prison. It set out 32 recommendations for change across government departments and partner organisations.

You can read the full review on GOV.UK by searching: Independent review of drugs by Professor Dame Carol Black.

What We Discuss in Episode 1

This episode is part origin story and part policy deep-dive. It remains one of the clearest explanations of what is broken in the system and what good could look like.

In the conversation, Dame Carol explains:

• What it is actually like to conduct an independent government review, including how review teams are formed and supported

• Why the drugs landscape must be understood as a market, and the scale of harm linked to organised crime and county lines

• Why medication alone cannot fix drug dependency without recovery infrastructure

• Why recovery requires a whole-system approach, including trauma-informed care, mental health support, housing, and employment

• Why listening to people in treatment is essential if services are to improve

At its core, this episode reinforces a principle that has shaped Believe in People ever since. Addiction is a health condition, and stigma remains one of the greatest barriers to effective treatment and recovery.

Key Takeaways

For readers short on time, Episode 1 makes five things clear:

• Drug addiction should be treated as a chronic health condition, not a moral failing

• Medication alone is not recovery without housing, mental health support, and purpose

• Underfunded services create higher long-term costs through crime, prison, and deaths

• People in treatment must be listened to if services are to improve

• Stigma undermines recovery at every level, from policy to practice

Quotes from this episode

“Drug addiction is a health condition, just like diabetes or rheumatoid arthritis, with relapses and remissions.”

“If you don’t do something about treatment and recovery, you will continue to pay the price in deaths, crime, and prison places.”

“You cannot expect people to recover if you give them a prescription and nothing else around them.”

About Professor Dame Carol Black

Professor Dame Carol Mary Black GBE FRCP is a distinguished physician, academic, and public servant, renowned for her research on scleroderma and her influential independent reviews for the UK Government on health, work, and drug misuse.

She was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in 2005 for services to medicine, and was further honoured with a Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire (GBE) in the 2024 New Year Honours list for public service.

Her current roles include:

• Independent Advisor to the Government on drug misuse

• Chair of the British Library

• Chair of the Centre for Ageing Better

• Chair of the board of Think Ahead, the government’s fast-stream training programme for mental health social workers

Previously, she served as:

• Principal of Newnham College, Cambridge from 2012 to 2019

• President of the Royal College of Physicians from 2002 to 2006