There are more than 1,200 crack cocaine and opiate users around Slough, new figures have revealed.

According to a Public Health England report, there are an estimated 1,284 users in the borough – all aged between 15 and 64 – and 525 in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead.

The report – analysed by addiction treatment experts at UKAT – reveals that there are more than 35,000 people thought to be using cocaine and opiates such as heroin in the south east.

The figure has risen by more than 5,000 in four years, according to the report.

UKAT experts say worryingly, the figures do not include anyone using cocaine in powder form, amphetamines, ecstasy or cannabis.

The data is based on users identified across the south east between March 1, 2016, and March 31, 2017.

The number of people living across the south east aged between 15 and 24, and using opiates and/or crack cocaine, currently stands at more than 3,600 and is of particular concern to the addiction expert team at UKAT.

CEO and former addict Eytan Alexander said: “Public Health England’s data clearly shows that an alarming number of teenagers and young adults are addicted to these incredibly potent substances.

“They’re seeking the feeling of euphoria at pocket money prices – crack rocks can be purchased for as little as a fiver with dealers available any time of day at the click of a button.

“Teenagers misusing crack and opiates at such an early age will not only suffer with the physical effects of the drugs, but the drugs could impact their education, overall achievement in life and expose them to a criminal environment at a young age, without full understanding of the risks and consequences of their actions.

“The impact of a person misusing these drugs in later life has a knock-on effect on their family, children, spouses as well as their own personal health, which will deteriorate at a much faster pace if drug use continues, and for some, will prove fatal.”

The table below shows the number of users in each area across the south east.