The Drugs and Alcohol Assessment and Treatment Service (DAATS), supports employees by helping them to stay in work, and return to work quickly and safely after struggling with addiction.
It is a proactive and supportive safe space to help employees experiencing issues around drugs, alcohol and gambling. It operates an open-door policy, and colleagues can refer themselves to the service. To date, the service has helped over 3000 colleagues.
Daniel Ruggirello (MBACP) works as a Counsellor for this service at TfL. He has written for Alcohol Change UK this Alcohol Awareness Week 2025, where the theme is ‘Alcohol and Work’, reflecting on the success of the service and how it supports all employees at TfL.
On 8 January 1991, a packed commuter train failed to stop and collided with the buffers at Cannon Street mainline rail station in London. Two people were killed and 542 were injured. Three days after the accident, the driver tested positive for cannabis.
The following year The Transport and Works Act 1992 was introduced, TfL introduced random drug and alcohol testing in the workplace for all safety-critical employees in order to conduct all due diligence. That same year, DAATS became part of the Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) operating under the Drug and Alcohol Policy. The first employee came forward for support on 1 February 1993.
DAATS was set up to help employees who are experiencing problems with alcohol or drugs (and since 2024 gambling), with the aim of a safe and timely return to the workplace. The service is for any employee that comes forward believing that they have, or are developing, a drink, drug, or gambling problem.
If an employee comes forward (either through self-referral, manager, or Occupational Health referral and admits an alcohol, drug, or gambling problem, they can receive the full support and care of DAATS. This includes, group and individual counselling, drug and alcohol testing in the workplace and residential treatment for those who are suitable. If an employee does not come forward and they provide a positive drugs or alcohol test during random testing, a disciplinary policy procedure will follow.
Our team also provides advice to our people leaders. For example, we may get phone calls from them telling us they are worried about an employee, asking how they can navigate difficult conversations with them. Having a manager who can enable employees to feel safe and comfortable makes it much easier for a struggling employee to open up. When they do, the manager can make a referral. The conversation they have with the manager is often the beginning of a life change.
Employees are welcome to come back to DAATS at any time after their treatment if they find themselves struggling and we will offer further support. We provide an ‘open door’ policy, one-to-one counselling, regular reviews, reunions, and specialised events for those who have received any kind of treatment from us.
Employees can initially contact their management team if they require support or are concerned about their drinking, or for advice about how to appropriately support a colleague. Our contact details are available across staff networks along with the referral forms. We offer training across the TfL workforce to raise awareness of the signs and symptoms of alcohol harm, and the services available.
We measure impact qualitatively and quantitively. We annually review all DAATS employees for a seven-year period, to help track our outcomes. This includes noticing career progression, if they stay with TfL, and offering our continued support.
We also monitor historical records of DAATS employees to measure the return in investment for the business. For example, the average cost of the treatment ‘pathway’ is a fraction of the cost to replace an experienced train operator. So, overall, it is a great investment for the employee and TfL to make.
We have approximately 90% success rate, with success being completion of treatment with the DAATS team and the safe return to their role, though this can vary slightly each year.
We acknowledge that early intervention is a key factor in our high success rate, and, due to the monitoring of safety, The Transport and Works Act 1992 allows us the luxury of early intervention.
The recovery capital afforded via employment, such as income, daily structure and social and professional skills means our employees generally present with fewer consequences of alcohol dependency, so we can focus on stress, anxiety, maladaptive behaviours and other underlying issues that lead to alcohol dependency. As our employees lack significant consequences of addiction, such as poor health, homelessness, criminal justice etc, they are able to implement change more efficiently.
We are familiar to our employees and some of the barriers to treatment are non-existent, or certainly easier to work with. The fact that we have a presence in TfL, and management teams offer ongoing support in the workplace, helps to break down some of the stigma associated with addiction.
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