Substance misuse is a key public health priority within the UK. Recent policy recommendations have highlighted the importance of providing services which focus on substance misuse recovery, not just treatment. Such support provides individuals with the skills and experiences they need to address key issues in their life which support their substance misuse recovery. It is hoped that this approach will help people to maintain abstinence and avoid relapse.

It has been recognised that the development of recovery capital is key to successful recovery. Recovery capital refers to the resources available to sustain recovery and refers to four key elements: human capital, social capital, physical and economic capital and cultural capital. Current service provision is predominantly provided by NHS, Local Authority and voluntary sector organisations. Some substance misuse provision in the UK does include a recovery function, however, recovery communities have an important role to play in delivering a range of services to support the development of recovery capital.

In October 2014, the Public Health Institute (PHI) at Liverpool John Moores University was commissioned to undertake an evaluation of the Comic Relief Give it Up recovery communities. The evaluation aimed to understand the key outcomes generated by the recovery community, with reference to recovery capital outcomes. The primary research question for the evaluation was: How do the recovery communities help people to maintain abstinence?