Drug charity launches in High Wycombe (From Bucks Free Press)

DrugFAM charity launched in High Wycombe today

6:59pm Friday 6th February 2009 in Search By Alex Hayes

A MOTHER who lost her son to drugs has launched a new High Wycombe based charity to help the families of drug addicts.

Elizabeth Burton-Phillips lost her son Nick to heroin five years ago at the age of 27.

Mrs Burton-Phillips, the head of RE at Godstowe Prep School, decided to set up the charity after discovering there was nowhere for the families of addicts to turn for advice.

She said: “The massive thing for me and my husband during the years we were trying to get through it was we could not find anywhere which supported families.

“We came across a little group based in Berkshire called Crack It, and that became our lifeline.

“Then when we sat down and thought about what we can do in Nick’s memory we decided it had to have something to do with families.”

The new charity, which is based in Castle Street, offers a free confidential helpline for families, as well as individual and group counselling.

Mrs Burton-Phillips continued: “We decided High Wycombe was a good place to start the charity as I work round here.

“When we were going through the nightmare of losing Nick everybody round here was so supportive, and we felt it was a fitting place to start.”

Teresa May MP, who is one of the patrons of DrugFAM, spoke at the launch in the Oak Room, in Wycombe Town Hall.

She said: “I notice Edmund Burke is featured on on of the windows here, and he famously said all it takes for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.

What we are seeing here today is a good woman who said ‘I’m going to do something’.

“This is something which will really make a difference to the lives of people up and down the country.”

Cressex resident Gail Pitts, who lost her son who was also called Nick to drugs two years ago, was also at the launch.

She said: “It’s obviously a positive thing for families who do not know which way to turn.

“Nick was never addicted to drugs, it was two nights of partying which killed him. As a family we never kept secrets so we knew he used drugs, but we didn’t have anywhere to turn.

“It will help families no end to be able to have somewhere to get help and advice, as there really is nothing locally at the moment.”

To contact the free and confidential service call 08453 883 853.