The Loop – the charity which introduced drug checking to the UK – has launched London’s first public-facing drug checking services in the boroughs of Hackney and Camden.
The service, which is fully funded by Hackney and Camden Councils and supported by the Metropolitan Police, will be operated by The Loop’s multi-disciplinary team of chemists and health professionals to provide rapid chemical analysis of substances with personalised harm reduction consultations. It aims to reduce drug-related harm, improve understanding of local drug markets and share intelligence with communities and stakeholders.
“This marks a major step for harm reduction in the UK,” said Katy Porter, chief executive officer of The Loop. “Following the introduction of The Loop’s Bristol-based service in 2024, crucially more people will now have access to regular drug checking. Hackney and Camden are the first of several London boroughs we are working with, alongside further cities.”
The service will operate on the first Saturday of each month in Camden and the third Saturday in Hackney throughout 2026. Service users can surrender substances into an amnesty box at designated locations. Chemists then analyse the drugs in a mobile laboratory before health professionals deliver the results and tailored advice in a confidential consultation.
“Drug markets are more dangerous than ever, with increasing numbers of potent synthetic drugs in circulation across the UK,” added Professor Fiona Measham, founder and chair of trustees of The Loop and chair in criminology at the University of Liverpool. “Drug checking can play a unique role in countering these threats, acting as the ‘canary in the coalmine’.”
The service, licensed by the Home Office, is free, confidential, non-judgemental and provided monthly. Service users take substances to the service base and surrender them into an amnesty box. About an hour later, they return to receive individually tailored consultations with health professionals. During that time, chemists in The Loop’s mobile lab analyse the submitted substance using a number of analytical techniques to identify the contents and strength.
Results will also be fed into local, national and international early warning systems, including public-facing drug alerts, to build a wider understanding of drug trends.
“It is important to ensure that people who are intending to use drugs do so in a way which is less likely to result in them coming to significant harm,” a spokesperson for Hackney Council said. “With the rise in synthetic opioids being found in drugs, including those not marketed as an opioid, it is more important than ever to ensure people can understand what they have purchased and what they may take.”
The Loop was established as the UK’s first dedicated drug checking charity, originating from Measham’s research on festival drug use. The organisation provided the UK’s first event-based, on-site drug testing and harm reduction services in 2013 at The Warehouse Project in Manchester. In 2016, the charity introduced the UK’s first festival-based drug checking services at Secret Garden Party and Kendal Calling and in 2018, introduced the UK’s first community-based drug checking services in Bristol and Durham. In 2024, The Loop opened and operated the UK’s first Home Office licenced, regular city centre drug checking service in Bristol.
Locations:
Hackney: The amnesty bin drop-off and Loop mobile laboratory are located at City & Hackney Recovery Service, 110 Mare Street, E8 3SG. The healthcare consultations will take place at this location or at local community centres.
Camden: The amnesty bin drop-off and Loop mobile laboratory are located at Camden’s Integrated Alcohol & Drug Service, King’s Studio, 43-45 King’s Terrace, NW1 0JR. The healthcare consultations will take place at this location.
When: Once per month throughout 2026; on the first Saturday of every month in Camden and the third Saturday of every month in Hackney, plus additional dates if required during the year.