Only two of 20 beds filled at rehab centre hailed by Nicola Sturgeon

Only two out of 20 beds were filled at a new drugs rehab centre opened by the First Minister last week despite it opening for referrals almost two months ago.

Nicola Sturgeon officially opened Harper House on Monday but rehab beds were available from the first week of October with experts warning the failure to fill beds suggests a worrying reluctance to refer addicts to residential rehab.

The first minister has promised her government will drive a reduction in Scotland’s toll of drugs deaths – the highest in Europe with 1,330 last year – after admitting ministers had “taken their eye off the ball.”

Increasing the number of residential rehab places is a key part of the strategy and Sturgeon opened Harper House – run by charity Phoenix Futures with £8 million of government grants – saying she was determined to make it easier for people with problem drug or alcohol use to access treatment.

However, the facility, in Saltcoats, Ayrshire, which can take people from all over Scotland, only had two residents despite being open for referrals on October 5 when Minister for Drug Policy Angela Constance posted online that up to 80 addicts a year would be helped there.

Ministers have promised to invest £100m to provide 1000 rehab places by 2026 but, we can reveal, the number of state-funded residential rehab places in Scotland has fallen after Public Health Scotland revealed placements available in the three months from April had to be reduced from 218 to 170 because of incorrect data.

Annemarie Ward, chief executive of charity Favor (Faces and Voices of Recovery) said demand for help was so high she could have filled Harper House – which can take up to 20 addicts at a time – with clients overnight and questioned the speed of referrals to the service, which is aimed at addicts with young children.

She said: “There has only been two referrals and it’s got 20 beds and that tells me there’s a culture in addiction services in Scotland that does not send people to residential rehab. The reality is they could fill it up tomorrow, if there was more urgency.”

Ward launched her charity’s annual report last week which included testimonies from people unable to access rehab beds. One client waited three years for a residential rehab place while another was refused and instead sent to a stabilisation unit, which only aims to manage drugs consumption.

The report calls for a centralised referral and funding system to end the postcode lottery which sees some clients refused access to facilities far from their homes.

The first minister insisted last week that the target of funding 1,000 rehab places annually by 2026 was still achievable.

However, Scottish Conservative Shadow Drugs Minister Sue Webber said her party’s Right to Recovery Bill would guarantee treatment for everyone who needed it, adding: “There is an ever-widening gap between the warm words of the SNP on the drugs-deaths scandal, and the reality of how little action they are taking.”

The Scottish Government said: “This excellent facility will help up to 80 families a year once firmly established and will contribute towards the Scottish Government’s aim to treble the number of publicly funded residential rehabilitation placements to 1,000 by 2026.”

Phoenix Futures Scotland said: “We are focused on ensuring as many families as possible, who need the specialist support provided by Harper House, have the opportunity to access this new, innovative service.

“Having just opened for admissions three weeks ago we are at the very early stages of offering families this specially designed environment.

“We intend to grow the service steadily to ensure we provide the best support possible for families, while continuing to offer appropriate provision for everyone in Harper House. We will carefully grow towards 20 families using the service over the coming months.”