Understand your rights under the Charter of Rights, what to expect from services, and what to do if your rights aren't being met.
If you use drugs or alcohol, or someone close to you does, you have rights. You are what the Charter calls a rights holder.
The Charter sets out what those rights are, what good support looks like, and what you can expect from the services around you. Remember, human rights belong to everyone, and that includes you.
Not everyone finds long documents easy to read. The easy-read version explains the Charter using simple words and pictures.
Your right to life is protected by law. You should be able to get treatment and support that helps you stay safe and live a longer life.
Services must take steps to protect people's lives, especially at times of higher risk. This includes planning support for someone leaving prison, hospital or residential care.
You have the right to good health and care. That means support you can reach, that you can afford, that treats you as a person, and that is good quality. You should be treated fairly and without stigma, wherever you live in Scotland.
You should not be turned away from health or care services because you use drugs or alcohol, or have done in the past.
You have the right to the things you need to live with dignity. This includes enough food, clothing, a home, and money to meet your basic needs and take part in your community.
You should be able to get social security support if you need it.
You have the right to respect for your private and family life, and to make decisions about your own life. You have the right to keep your family relationships and to stay in contact if your family is split up.
A parent's use of drugs or alcohol should not be the only reason for removing a child from their care, or for stopping contact. Your personal health information, including test results and treatment history, should usually only be shared with your consent.
You have the right to clean, safe air, water and surroundings. The place you live should make you feel safe.
You should never be treated in a way that causes serious physical or mental suffering, or that makes you feel worthless or hopeless.
You should be able to get the medicine you need, including for drug or alcohol dependence, pain and palliative care, and including in prison or police custody. Medicine should never be withheld to control or punish you.
You should not be arrested or held without a lawful reason. You should not be detained just because you use drugs or alcohol.
For minor drug-related offences, support and diversion from prosecution should come before punishment.
The Charter itself is not a law. It is a guide to good practice.
Some of these rights are already part of the law in Scotland, through the Human Rights Act 1998. These are the right to life, the right to private and family life, freedom from torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, and freedom from arbitrary arrest or detention.
Other rights are set out in international agreements that the UK, including Scotland, has signed up to.
You have the right to speak up if you feel your rights, or the rights of someone you care for, are not being met. You can give feedback or make a complaint. Someone can do this for you with your consent.
Often the quickest way to sort something out is to speak to the person most involved in your care, or their manager. Many issues can be resolved this way.
An advocate helps you say what you want and stand up for your rights. They can often help resolve an issue before it becomes a formal complaint.
The Scottish Independent Advocacy Alliance can help you find an advocacy service. Call them on 0131 510 9410 or via www.siaa.org.uk
You can share feedback about your care through Care Opinion, and you can do this anonymously. Call Care Opinion free on 0800 122 3135.
If you’re unhappy with a service, you have the right to make a formal complaint. When you do, it helps to be clear about three things. Which right or standard you think was not met. What happened and how it affected you. What you would like done to put it right.
For help with complaints about NHS care, contact your local Patient Advice and Support Service. The service is free, independent and confidential. Call 0800 917 2127, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm.
There is a template complaints letter in the downloads below to help you get started.
If you have already complained to a service and you are still unhappy, you can ask an independent person to look into it.
For care services, contact the Care Inspectorate on 0345 600 9527 or at www.careinspectorate.scot/complaints-and-feedback/complaints-about-registered-services/complain-about-a-service
For complaints about NHS, council, housing, or prison services, contact the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman on 0800 377 7330 or at www.spso.org.uk
For free, confidential advice, contact Citizens Advice Scotland on 0800 028 1456
You can find the full complaints guidance, including an example complaint letter, in the Charter documents below.
If you or someone close to you needs support with drugs or alcohol, help is available.
You can talk confidentially to a trained recovery worker through the WithYou webchat service, seven days a week.
You can also search for drug and alcohol services and needle exchanges across Scotland at drugandalcoholservices.scot.
