Hundreds die of drug misuse across West Midlands

Local leaders are preparing to set out how they intend to tackle rising drug‑misuse deaths across the West Midlands.

Figures show more than 600 people in the region died over a two‑year period, according to the West Midlands State of the Region 2026 report.

It said there were 9,697 deaths from drug misuse nationally between 2022 and 2024, and 613 of these were from Birmingham, Coventry, Dudley, Sandwell, Solihull, Walsall and Wolverhampton.

The report will be presented to the West Midlands Combined Authority's local scrutiny committee when it meets on Monday.

Birmingham had the region's highest rate of drug-misuse deaths, at 10 per 100,000 people, followed by Coventry at 8.7, the report found.

Rates were 8.5 in Wolverhampton, 6.5 in Walsall, 5 in Dudley, 3.9 in Solihull and 1.7 in Sandwell.

National survey data also showed drug use rising among young people. The Crime Survey for England and Wales found 8.7% of adults aged 16–59 reported using drugs in the year to March 2025, which is around 2.9 million people.

Frequent drug use among 16–24‑year‑olds rose sharply from 2.5% to 3.5% in just 12 months.

The report also highlighted shifting patterns in smoking and vaping. Smoking rates across the WMCA continue to fall, dropping from 14.6% in 2019 to 12.7%. Solihull has the lowest rate at 10%, followed by Coventry at 10.6%, both close to the England average of 10.4%.

Sandwell is the only area to see an increase, rising from 15.3% to 16.8%, now the highest in the region.

Men continue to smoke at higher rates than women in most areas.

In Birmingham, 16.3% of men are current smokers compared with 8% of women. Dudley is the exception, where the female smoking rate (12.4%) exceeds the male rate (11%).

The report also raises concerns about the rapid rise in vaping. National e‑cigarette use has more than doubled from 6.6% in 2020 to 15.3% in 2024, prompting questions about the long‑term health impacts of sustained use.

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