Construction of Adele House’s latest $10.6 million drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility at Bucca, north of Coffs Harbour is well underway.
With all major earthworks completed and structural works in progress the project is expecgted to be finished ahead of schedule.
The project comprises three buildings connected by walkways. The largest building is a two-storey, 40-bed residential block. A second building contains conference and meeting rooms, training facilities and a large kitchen, while recreation facilities are housed in the third building.
Coffs Harbour-based company, F M Glenn Constructions is managing the project and is subcontracting the majority of work to local trades and suppliers.
The State Government has contributed $5 million towards the $10.6 million project, with the PAYCE Foundation contributing the remaining $5.6 million to expand the centre’s drug and alcohol treatment services.
Adele House can currently accommodate 10 clients in a house on the farm.
PAYCE Foundation Director Dominic Sullivan said drug addiction is a problem not only in city communities but also in regional and country areas.
“The PAYCE Foundation continues to support the Adele House program because it focuses on health, wellbeing and self-esteem, providing clients with real living and work skills to help turn their lives around and reconnect with families.”
The project is a major boost for Adele House, which has been operating continuously for 35 years as a highly experienced accredited organisation, effectively assisting men aged from 18 to overcome the effects of substance abuse.
Adele House Chairman Will Morgan said the facility program had a successful track record of improving the health and future prospects of clients who have suffered from addiction.
“Our staff are excited to see the new facilities rapidly taking shape and we look forward to having them operational in the first half of next year,” he said.
“Adele House has seen an increase in the rate of clients with an addiction to ice escalate from 30 per cent five years ago to 65 per cent today.
“This project is going to make a real difference to so many lives and to the lives of their loved ones.
“Clients who complete the Adele program and are free from addiction, ready to reconnect with their family and start work,” Mr Morgan said.
Onsite state-of-the-art workshops provide training in a variety of skills, including mechanical repairs, horticulture, metalwork and woodworking.
The PAYCE Foundation and private donors have previously contributed $8 million to Adele House to develop an 11-hectare blueberry farm on the rural property, which is currently run as a social enterprise, reducing reliance on government and private donations for recurrent funding.
