On 14th November, The Loop Drug Checking Service will be launching drug checking in Birmingham, with services operating fortnightly in two city centre locations, free to the public and fully funded by Birmingham City Council.
The Birmingham service comes as The Loop marks ten years since introducing drug checking in the UK, continuing the expansion of its harm reduction services across UK cities.
Drug checking services will be provided by The Loop at BIRCH (Birmingham Integrated Recovery Community Hub) in Digbeth and CGL Birmingham’s Health & Wellbeing Hub at Lonsdale House in the city centre.
Drug checking combines rapid chemical analysis of substances of concern with individually tailored, non-judgemental health consultations to reduce drug-related harm, without fear of arrest.
People accessing the service will be able to surrender a small amount of a substance for analysis by The Loop’s chemists with results informing personalised consultations with health staff. This contributes to a wider understanding of local drug markets and drug trends in Birmingham, with information from testing informing public health initiatives and targeted harm reduction responses.
The launch forms part of The Loop’s continued expansion of drug checking across the UK. In 2016, The Loop introduced the UK’s first event-based drug checking services. It went on to introduce the UK’s first community-based drug checking services in 2018, before opening the UK’s first Home Office-licensed regular city centre service in Bristol in 2024 and three London services in 2026.
The Birmingham service comes during the tenth anniversary year for drug checking in the UK, marking a further step in The Loop’s work in widening access to regular community-based drug checking, at a time when drug-related deaths continue to rise and drug markets become more turbulent.
The development and delivery of the Birmingham services involves local partners including KIKIT Pathways to Recovery, Change Grow Live (CGL), University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust , and West Midlands Police Force.
Birmingham service information
Digbeth site
BIRCH – Birmingham Integrated Recovery Community Hub, 9 Allcock Street, Deritend, Birmingham, B9 4DY
The drug checking service will operate on the second Saturday of each month from 12pm to
8pm (last surrender: 7pm) and commencing on 14 November.
Central site
CGL Birmingham – Health & Wellbeing Hub, Lonsdale House, Blucher Street, Birmingham, B1 1QU
The drug checking service will operate on the last Wednesday of the month from 2pm to
9pm (last surrender: 8pm) and commencing on 25 November.Â
How does the service work?
- The services will operate on a drop-in basis and will not require an appointment. Service users can surrender a small amount of a substance of concern for laboratory analysis.
- The Loop can complete testing using a very small amount.
- The Loop’s chemists analyse surrendered substances using a range of analytical techniques
- to identify their contents and, where possible, strength.
- Service users then receive an individually tailored, anonymous and non-judgemental
- consultation with a health professional informed by the results of the analysis.
- No surrendered substances are returned.
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