The first family court service to help parents recover from drug and alcohol addiction in Belsize Park using so-called “booze bracelets” will be extended nationwide.

The Family Drug and Alcohol Court (FDAC) works with people whose children have been taken into care because of their parents’ substance abuse, to offer families support and the chance to be reunited once again.

The first court was set up by the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust, based in Belsize Lane, Belsize Park, in conjunction with children’s charity Coram, in St Pancras.

Electronic tags which monitor the amount of alcohol drunk by someone, nick-named “booze bracelets”, are just one of the ways in which the court service makes sure children are living in a safe home, whether with their parents after treatment or with a foster family.

Service manager at the FDAC, Sophie Kershaw, said: “Parents find pur problem solving approach fairer and we have had success getting them into treatment and returning children to their care.

“It’s a privilege to expand the service and the next stage will bring new challenges.”

The service is now expanding to more locations.