​​​Ronnie Duberry and I were at Drug Advisory Service Haringey (DASH) some 20 years ago. We were thinking about what made the lifestyle we lived, which we knew held so much, attractive to others? We drove fast cars, dressed in nice clothes and jewellery and were charismatic. We knew that there were aspects of this street life that people liked and other aspects that hurt us, our family and our community. The penny dropped and we realised that, while we liked the cars, clothes and jewellery, one of the things that we valued the most about our lifestyle was the social element, the camaraderie. But what had to go was: the time in prison, criminality, substance misuse, and lack of connection to our loved ones and our community. The idea of Bringing Unity Back into the Community (BUSIC) was born. We had no start-up funds, just a great idea, a phone previously used for dealing and our will to make something happen. When people rang to score, we told them we had something new to offer and asked people to meet us. We started talking to them about what mattered to us, how we could help one another through peer support, challenge each other to be better and build ourselves up. The drug line became the BUBIC hotline. It is still in use today as our crisis line 07984 481 537. In those early days, we ran around doing outreach in the community. We were brave and responsive to the needs of our community. As the mission of the Starship Enterprise in Star Trek was to ‘go where no man has gone before’, BUBIC’s mission was – and still is – to go where no drug service had gone before. We walked into dark places, drug dens and underground garages. Our meetings were held in Ronnie’s kitchen. This was also our place of planning where we transferred our skills from street to building networks and power in our community. We also operated from the boot of our cars, setting up stalls in the community. In all weathers, we walked in rain and snow to help those that needed support but were unaware that they did. BUBIC has come a long way but not without the support of a few wonderful people and agencies. Haringey’s Drug and Alcohol Action Team (DAAT) led by Marion Morris many moons ago was a fighting force, supporting our vision: to Bring Unity Back into our Community. Sarah Hart, our commissioner, has continually championed us and ensured BUBIC continues to reach those hardest to reach during the most difficult times of their lives. Angie De Spong, Chief Executive of Haringey Mencap, has helped us with her wide­ reaching knowledge and passion for community support. The North London Partnership Consortium and John Egbo supported us to establish and build ongoing infrastructure fit for BUBIC’s need. And the most important support came from our community without them we would be nothing: THANK YOU. The most important stakeholders are those who access our services. We are nothing without you. You are the heartbeat that keeps us moving and passionate. You remind us that we are all only ever a step away from difficulty should we not take good care of ourselves. Our excellent and highly skilled Board of Trustees help us to strategically steer the direction of BUBIC alongside our HR Lead, Caragh Arthur, who ensures compliance. All our colleagues, volunteers, stakeholders and BUBIC allies have faced personal adversities of their own, making them the perfect people to ensure we meet our organisational objectives. Today BUBIC is at the forefront of social prescribing, building community connection and values through community hubs where people ride bikes, share time, cook, eat, read and play games together, so people can smile and laugh when normally they don’t. We are truly peer-led and never shut. We were open during COVID-19 and are open at Christmas, ensuring that we are always there for those most in need. During the pandemic, the BUBIC team adapted quickly, moving from a face-to-face service to a hybrid one. And we have retained a hybrid service model as it helps more people to engage. Last Christmas, we could not cook food due to COVID-19, so we gave out hampers with food, gifts, and goodies to make people smile. We delivered hampers to people who were ‘ sleeping rough locally, using them as a way to let people know about BUBIC and how to access our service. We hope this Christmas we can reach more people, make them smile at this tough time of year for those facing addiction, adversity, life on the streets. 20 years on, we remain passionate about providing people with dignity and support. BUBIC continues to run two-night sessions so that people can access services after 5pm. These sessions have been proving invaluable, helping those in great need. On Mondays, our online support session continues, and we have our face-to-face group every Wednesday, with links to the groups in our newsletter.