Drug and alcohol rehabilitation programmes run by Croydon Council have been “put on hold” because the authority has run out of money.

Kairos Community Trust, a charity with helps homeless people overcome addiction, this week expressed dismay at services used by its clients being stopped.

In a letter to the Croydon Guardian, the charity said one of its clients, a woman with mental health problems, had been due to start a 12-week detox course which has now been postponed.

It added: “All detoxes are now to be referred to the local NHS hospital A&E, piling pressure on them, while all rehab referrals have been stopped.”

Rehab and detox programmes fall with the remit Croydon Council’s public health services.

A council spokesman said: “New placements for residential rehabilitation were temporarily put on hold in January due to pressures on this budget; however, internal re-allocation of funds is likely to allow us to lift this temporary hold.

“There has been no change in access to inpatient detoxification and community-based rehabilitation support and Croydon residents have continued to be able to access support”.

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