Ketamine addiction among young prisoners sees sharp rise

Government health data reveals that both adult prisoners and young offenders are struggling with ketamine addiction at record-breaking levels.

The data, analyzed by national drug and alcohol treatment experts The UKAT Group, shows sharp and sustained rises in ketamine-related treatment among people in custody.

UKAT’s analysis shows that ketamine is the drug for which treatment has risen to a record-breaking high among prisoners.

The number of prisoners receiving help for ketamine addiction has increased by 46% in a year - after cases rose from 463 in 2023/24 to 675 in 2024/25.

And it has risen by 168% over the past decade - with just 251 recorded cases in 2015/16.

The number of young offenders receiving help for ketamine addiction also rose by 80% in one year - from 15 cases in 2023/24 to 27 in 2024/25.

Zaheen Ahmed, Director of Addiction Therapy at The UKAT Group, described a "deepening addiction crisis across the entire secure estate".

He said: "Ketamine use is rising faster than services can keep up, and for far too many people, custody remains the first place they receive any meaningful drug treatment.

"That is a clear failure of early intervention in the community.

“Prisoners and young offenders are not separate from society - they are part of it.

"Many enter custody with long histories of trauma, mental illness and substance misuse that went unsupported and ignored for years.

“Treatment behind bars must be more than crisis management.

"Without specialist ketamine services, proper clinical oversight and continuity of care on release, we are simply reacting at the most dangerous point rather than preventing harm.

"It’s really important to remember here that addiction is a health issue, not a moral failing.”