THE crackdown of the last 48 hours has been welcomed by Boscombe residents who say they’ve lived with drugs related problems for years.

But how serious is Bournemouth’s drug problem, and can it ever be solved?

Boscombe West councillor Chris Wakefield, who followed officers on some of the household raids, praised Dorset Police’s proactive approach.

“It’s a pan-Bournemouth, concerted effort and a real chance for people who’ve held back before to seek help,” he said.

“Now is the time to get problems sorted before the drug-dealing void is filled. Children are vulnerable, as are ladies in prostitution. It doesn’t make them a terrible person.

“Now we’re trying to sweep up the vulnerable people and offer them help in their time of need.”

Cllr Lisa Northover, who’s lived in Bournemouth all her life, says: “Drugs have been a problem in Boscombe for as long as I can remember.

“It’s a very difficult thing to tackle as it causes so many other problems, and so really needs a holistic approach like this which looks at housing, drug rehabilitation and mental health services.”

There are around 12,500 “problem drug users” in the Bournemouth area, and between 600-800 seek help from Bournemouth Drug and Alcohol Action Team (DAAT) each year.

DAAT co-ordinator Chris Snelling expects to see this rise sharply as users find it harder to get their fix.

“Drug misuse is no worse here than anywhere else in the country, but there are one or two routes where drugs are brought down for sale from larger cities,” he said.

Paul Spanjar, treatment director for the Providence Projects in Boscombe, says the same drugs problem can be seen across the country.

He could not comment on the latest police operation, but believes law enforcement should go hand in hand with more treatment.

“Very often police operations end up picking up the wrong people. By that I mean they end up picking up a lot of people on the street who are drug users and not really at the higher level of supply,” he said.

“We all know the supplies are coming from someone with a lot more money and a lot more drugs than the average drug user.”

Giving offenders the chance to commit to a treatment programme, rather than face a caution or a counter-productive short prison sentence, could make all the difference, he believes.

The Bournemouth mother of one 22-year-old heroin addict tells how she has seen her son “wasting away in front of me”. “He’s a 6ft 4in skeleton,” she said.

She believes the government should compel addicts to seek treatment. “If they spent the money that way, they could cut the crime rate by half. These people are forced into stealing or robbing or whatever just to get some money for drugs. They’re desperate,” she added.

And she stresses that drug addiction can be found almost anywhere. “His girlfriend holds down a responsible job and she’s still addicted. People can function with an addiction like this if they’re earning enough money,” she said.

Mindy Crespi, chief executuive of Essential Drug and Alcohol Services in Dorset, says drug use “cuts across all social barriers and all economic barriers – from professionals in high paid jobs to those in receipt of benefits”.

“Policing the issue has its benefits in terms of putting people off if they feel there’s a criminality about it. However I don’t think that in too many cases, once addiction’s started to take hold, that people are that bothered about whether it’s legal or illegal,” said.

More treatment and more education is vital in addition to policing, she says.

“However many people they’ve locked up today through their arrests, there will be 20 more people behind them ready to take their place and deal drugs on the streets.”