Some drug users require longer-term therapeutic support to tackle their drug problems. A number of projects, widely known as 'rehabs', have been set up in the voluntary sector providing a wide range of different types of residential support. These are based on many different philosophies and stays vary usually from 3 -6 months and offer a combination of individual key-working / counselling and groups. Some services provide longer support in the form of supported housing to assist clients to re-integrate into mainstream society, after they have completed the treatment programme.

Rehabilitation projects cater for between 6-35 clients, can be mixed or single sex, city- or countryside-based. Some rehabs specialise in providing services to particular client groups such as younger users, women or parents with children. The majority of users will enter rehabs drug–free, having completed an inpatient or community detoxification programme. These services will usually require individuals to have an assessment for community care funding to pay for their treatment.

‘Rehabs’ tend to be holistic in approach and will support clients around a wide range of issues as well as their drug use, such as education programmes, support around legal, social and family issues.

Access to rehabs is a postcode lottery to some degree, with different boroughs or areas having a different attitude towards funding rehabs. Some boroughs or areas may only fund certain rehabs, meaning that the client may not be able to choose which one they want to go to. The time taken to get into rehab can vary, but tends to be a minimum of three months, generally longer, again as demand far outweighs supply.