£20,000 lottery funding boost for Fife alcohol support group's work with families

The backing will help Fife Alcohol Support Service with its works with families affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) - a lifelong condition which can be the result of just one alcoholic drink during pregnancy. The Kingdom is one of very few areas to have this type of service available locally. The lottery funding will facilitate peer support sessions, provide one to one support and education around the condition over the coming year.

The project has been running since 2021 and is coordinated by a parent with lived experience. It began when FASS was approached by an informal group of parents/carers who were struggling, without support, to care for their affected children. Since then, FASD Fife has been providing coping mechanisms around the significant brain-based and physical challenges the condition presents. It often works with foster carers or adoptive parents.

Judith Knox, co-ordinator, said the condition is not necessarily related to what might be considered heavy drinking or misuse of alcohol,

“Unborn babies who are exposed to alcohol – at any level and at any point – are at risk of being born with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder.,” she said. “With around 45% of pregnancies in the UK unplanned and often unconfirmed until many weeks in, everyone needs to be aware of the risks of alcohol, even very small amounts, n pregnancy. Our message is simply if you are drinking alcohol and having sex, take precautions against becoming pregnant and if you are pregnant or planning a pregnancy, don’t drink alcohol’.”

In the last year the project has directly helped improve life outcomes for many people affected in many ways—from supporting an affected adult to retain her job by working to implement reasonable adjustments with her employer, to helping a birth mother overcome her huge fear of stigma and join the peer support group. This can be life changing for parents and carers.

Judith added: “We are not here to judge but to educate and support on the issues of pre-birth alcohol exposure. People can download factsheets from our website and we urge them to please get in touch to chat through any worries or concerns they may have. We will support parents/carers who have children affected, as well as adults formally diagnosed with FASD. There may only be a suspicion that alcohol exposure pre-birth may be a contributing factor to daily living challenges and we can help there too.”

The project has also provided information, advice and training workshops to hundreds of professionals since it began. Thanks to Awards for All Scotland it will be able to continue this work over the year to come.

FASS provides a range of services designed to meet the special needs of vulnerable people within Fife who are affected by alcohol-related problems and substance misuse. We also provide help for carers of individuals in difficulty and for people who are socially isolated and vulnerable. The service can be contacted on 07540 377707 , at https://www.fassaction.org.uk/fasd-home/ or on Facebook and Twitter