Who cares? Young people with parents who use alcohol or other drugs talk about their experiences with services

Over the past 10 years there has been an increasing interest in the lives of children in families affected by parental alcohol or other drug use. What remains relatively unexplored is how children and young people experience these lives and the way in which they are supported by the broad service system. This paper reports on a project conducted in the Australian Capital Territory where young people talked about their lives. It stresses the importance of recognising that children and young people can be affected by their parents? alcohol or other drug use, and that it is important to spend time talking with them to gauge their needs and wishes and to adopt a collaborative and family-focused approach to responding to the needs of all members within the family unit.