Drug Checking

Drug checking provides a unique opportunity for people to access rapid, accurate and timely information about substances of concern in circulation in the local drug market, combined with non-judgemental support from health professionals. People using the service can surrender substances of concern for laboratory analysis by chemists, and the results guide personalised consultations as well as feed into local, national and international early warning systems, including public-facing drug alerts, and build our understanding of drug trends.

The Loop is committed to ensuring drug checking services and related harm reduction advice and support is available to the public in a variety of settings, and that related information is communicated and disseminated widely to reduce drug-related harm.

Drug checking combines chemical analysis with health consultations, with the primary aim of reducing harmful drug use alongside the primary characteristic of direct engagement with people who use drugs. The public-facing component of a drug checking service makes it distinct from a drug testing service. This includes both:

  • The sourcing and provision of substances of concern for analysis.

  • The direct communication of test results and pertinent information regarding the substances submitted, through an in-person consultation with a health professional.

The Loop provides drug checking services in locations across the UK. These are currently within community settings and city centres. Our drug checking is a free, anonymous service, and involves surrender of a substance to us, which we immediately perform tests on in our onsite laboratory, and then provide information and through a tailored  harm reduction advice based on our findings.

Everyone is welcome to use our service and you can visit to speak with us about drugs and harm reduction, even if you don’t submit a substance.

Our service is licenced by the Home Office. Find out more about the laboratory methods we use.

By testing substances across the UK, we build a web of data that helps us provide harm reduction advice, both directly (in-person consultations) and indirectly (alerts and social media content), for people who take drugs, informed by an understanding of the current drug market. When our testing indicates the potential of significant public health threat related to a submitted substance, we not only share this information with the person who submitted the substance, we share an alert more widely on our social media, with stakeholders, and on our Alerts page.

The Loop does not offer a postal testing service to the general public outside of our drug checking services. Outside of our public drug checking services, WEDINOS is the only UK organisation to currently offer a postal testing service. Some basic testing can be done at home with “reagent tests” to get an immediate test result. The Loop uses this as one of our secondary test methods and we obtain reagents from Reagent Tests UK.

Find a service

  • Our Bristol drug checking service is located at:
    Bristol Drugs Project, 1 Brunswick Square, St Paul's, Bristol BS2 8PE | View map

    This service takes place on the last Saturday of the month.

    View dates for 2026

  • Our Hackney drug checking service is located at:
    Turning Point, 110 Mare St, London, E8 3SG | View map

    This service takes place on the third Saturday of the month.

    View dates for 2026

  • Our Camden drug checking service is located at:
    CGL, King’s Studio, 43-45 King’s Terrace, London, NW1 0JR | View map

    This service takes place on the first Saturday of the month.

    View dates for 2026

How does it work?

Step 1. You submit a substance for testing.

Step 2. You fill out a brief assessment related to the substance - including what you think it is, and what your drug use is like.

Step 3. We perform a number of lab tests on the substance, including a test for highly potent synthetic opioids.

Step 4. After about an hour, we’re ready with the results, and there is an opportunity to speak openly and receive non-judgmental and factual information regarding drugs and harm reduction advice with a member of The Loop's healthcare team.

Where there is a dependency on the submitted substance, we are able to support people in engaging and receiving further services, accessing support and treatment.