When a home becomes a drugs base: what to do about cuckooing - with Louise Butler and Chloe Higginson

Cuckooing is the practice of befriending vulnerable people in order to use their home for drug dealing. It is an increasing and complex problem, in which the victim might experience financial, emotional and physical abuse – and is afraid to seek help for fear of being taken to be part of the crime. This talk explores the issues cuckooing presents and the need for a multi-disciplinary approach.

This session will be 90 minutes and includes short talks from individual panel members, plus discussion of audience questions. If you’d like to submit a question for the panel to address, please send this to jo.kay@advocacyproject.org.uk.

Panel

Louise Butler Louise has 20 years' experience of working in health and social care, including within the NHS, local authority and third sector services. She began her career as a general nurse, moved into the field of substance misuse and dual diagnosis services and for the last 6 years has led change programs including quality assurance, community engagement and organisational development with a focus on safeguarding adults.

Louise's approach to development is to create conditions which enable people to find their own individual and collective solutions to challenges and situations. Louise has a particular interest in the challenges of collaborative working across organisations. Louise has a Masters degree from Keele University in Law and Policy: Safeguarding Adults and has published material on making safeguarding personal in the Journal of Adult Protection.

Chloe Higginson is Anti-Social Behaviour Caseworker for Westminster Council. She has a background in psychology, and has worked extensively in the probation service including as court probation officer at Central Criminal Court. In her current role she takes a victim-centred, multi-agency case management approach to addressing residential and street-based anti-social behaviour.

The talk will be delivered via a live stream on Zoom. Once you've booked your place, the joining instructions will be included in the Eventbrite confirmation and are also below

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87273730050?pwd=MVk0cTRDNUJudmlPNGZWbHZPaEdHdz09

Meeting ID: 872 7373 0050

Password: 908233

Previous speakers have included:

• Jonathan Ellis, Director of Policy and Advocacy at Hospice UK
• Shaama Saggar-Malik, Directory of Diversity in Public Appointments
• Dr Dele Olajide, former Medical Director of SLAM
• Janet Gurney, Director of Training for 'Us in a Bus,'
• Megan Karnes, HoardingUK
• Kate Mercer, Black Belt Advocacy
• Gail Petty, Advocacy Lead and QPM Manager at NDTi
• Tim Farmer, author and founder of TSF Consultants
• Jamie Renton, CEO of Action Disability Kensington and Chelsea
• Joe Batty, Senior Community Development and Engagement Officer at Kensington and Chelsea Social Council
• Bernie Flaherty, Bi-Borough Executive Director of Adult Social Care
• Alex Ruck Keene, Barrister at 39 Essex Chambers