Latest Drug Use Trends and Data: Key Highlights for Employers

The Office for National Statistics has released its latest report on drug misuse in England and Wales, offering a detailed look at how drug use is evolving across age groups and substance types. This article summarizes the key findings into digestible sections, helping employers, policymakers, and health professionals quickly understand the most important trends.

While some substances saw minor shifts in usage, the overall picture remains largely unchanged — a crucial insight for employers aiming to maintain safe, compliant workplaces.

Overall Drug Use: Overall Unchanged

• 8.8% of adults aged 16 to 59 reported using drugs in the past year.
• This number equates to approximately 2.9 million people.
• Usage remains higher than a decade ago.

Most Commonly Used Drugs

• Class A drugs (e.g., cocaine, ecstasy) held steady at 3.0%.
• This number equates to approximately 1 million people.
• Cannabis remains the most used drug, with 6.8% of adults reporting use.
• Nitrous oxide and crack cocaine use declined.

Age Group Breakdown

• 16 to 24-year-olds reported the highest usage: 16.5% used drugs in the past year.
• This age group also showed higher rates of frequent drug use (more than once a month).
• Older age groups showed lower and more stable usage patterns.

Making Sense of the Trends

According to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics, around 1 million adults aged 16 to 59 in England and Wales reported using a Class A drug (cocaine or ecstasy) within the past year.

This age group closely mirrors the UK’s core working-age population, meaning that roughly 1 in every 33 adults in the workforce may be engaging in high-risk substance use.

Whether you’re managing safety-critical roles or fostering a culture of wellbeing, understanding the prevalence of Class A drug use is essential. It underscores the importance of having robust, ethical drug screening policies in place – ones that are not only compliant, but also adaptable to the evolving landscape of substance misuse.

To build on this, it’s worth understanding how to recognise the early signs of drug misuse among employees. This article on spotting substance abuse in the workplace offers practical guidance that complements the latest data — a valuable next read for any employer focused on safety and wellbeing.

Read: How to Spot Substance Abuse in the Workplace