Health bosses sparked outrage in January by announcing the Acer Unit at Southmead Hospital was to be closedNews
Gabriel Shepard Assistant Head of Print
05:00, 28 Apr 2025
The Acer Unit at Southmead Hospital(Image: Change Grow Live)
The future of Bristol’s only NHS detox unit for people trying to get off alcohol or drugs will be decided next month – but there is still time for residents to have a say.
Health bosses sparked outrage in January by announcing the Acer Unit at Southmead Hospital was to be closed in March in a bid to save money.
However, following a petition signed by thousands of locals, the 10-bed unit was given a reprieve to allow for further consultation with stakeholders and the wider community.
That consultation is now ongoing and will report ahead of a decision made by the Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership Trust board next month.
In a report to Bristol City Council, the trust said continuing to run the service in its current form was not financially viable as it was running at a loss of between £800,000 and £1.7 million a year.
It added: “The offers available to support substance misuse and detoxification nationally have evolved over the last decade and more detoxification and support is available in the community, in homes and close to home.”
The trust said it believed there were four options: doing nothing, increasing “inpatient offer to improve utilisation”, reducing bed capacity or closure. The first three options all bore the risk of the trust losing money, although full closure could result in redeployment and redundancy costs.
The Acer Unit has been credited with saving the lives of many Bristolians who have hit rock bottom through drink or drugs.
The earlier decision to shut the unit came after the trust learned a block booking contract, which expired on March 31, was not being renewed by Bristol City Council. The mental health trust had said losing the certainty of this block booking made it financially uncertain and unsustainable. Bristol City Council said it had put its drug and alcohol rehabilitation services out to tender and opted to award the contract to an organisation called Turning Point, which did not have any similar facility itself to the unit in the south-west and had intended to send people to the Acer unit.
An AWP spokesperson said: “This is a service we are proud of and we recognise the impact Acer has had for those individuals and families who have used it.”
The trust added it was “committed to listening to understand and to hear your views”, adding it would ensure those currently within the service completed their treatment.
Feedback can be given via www.awp.nhs.uk
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