Sky Sports’ Pete Graves has pledged his support to a local substance misuse charity and wants to aid the ongoing drive to raise awareness.
Pete, originally from Hexham, has agreed to become a Patron of PROPS – Positive Response to Overcoming Problems of Substance Misuse, a North East based support service for individuals, families and carers of those living with alcohol and substance misuse.
Pete has worked with many sporting stars who have battled with alcohol and drug dependency during his time in journalism and understands this problem doesn’t just stop at celebrities.
Pete said “As soon as I heard about the great work that was going on at PROPS I wanted to be involved. Substance abuse and addiction tears families apart every single day. The lifelong effect it can have on young people can be catastrophic. Thankfully with the hard work, commitment and dedication of the team at PROPS, families and young futures are being saved on a weekly basis. I’d encourage anyone in the North East who’s not familiar with the charity or who’s perhaps having any personal difficulties to look them up and get in touch as soon as possible.”
PROPS began life in 1997 as Scotswood Family Drug Support Group. It was set up in the west end of Newcastle upon Tyne, as a result of local women’s concerns regarding support for parents and partners of alcohol and drug misusers.Their intention was to set up their own peer support group, to help those affected by substance misuse to cope with the problems they were facing. Soon the group became confident enough to become active in addressing the issues surrounding drug and alcohol misuse, in particular the emotional, health and economic effect on carers.
In a relatively short space of time PROPS evolved from humble beginnings to a charity which is recognised both locally and nationally. In 2003 PROPS were awarded the Queen’s Golden Jubilee Award for Service to Local Communities, and the then Chair, the late Val Clark, was recognised as a Local Hero in the Year of the Volunteer receiving her award in London from the Home Secretary. The charity now supports over 650 families in Newcastle and North Tyneside each year.
Claire Robinson, CEO of PROPS says “We are delighted that Pete has chosen to support our charity. The trauma caused by alcohol and drug misuse rips whole families apart. There are millions of people across the country affected yet very few speak out as there still such stigma and because of this people feel that they are alone. Pete’s involvement will raise the profile of our services so that more people know that they are not alone and feel able to reach out and to access support that can help to rebuild their family.”
Now in its 30th year, the charity has sixteen staff and eleven volunteers and provides a wide range of support services such as one-to-one support, counselling, drug awareness training, a confidential out-of-hours helpline, volunteer support and respite breaks. Fourteen Boots the chemist stores chose PROPS as their nominated charity in 2017, to support the charity with their fundraising and awareness campaign.
The charity also established Positive Practice Partnership in 2012, to provide a sustainable source of income for PROPS. The company delivers training and consultancy in specialist family interventions and social workers across the UK.
For further advice or information, please visit wwwnewcastleprops.org.uk