By Courtney Cameron & Jenness Mitchell

Police in Glasgow have designed a new strategy to tackle drug-related deaths in the city.

Statistics released by the National Records of Scotland in July showed the number of drug-related deaths in Scotland in 2018 was 1187 - the largest ever recorded and more than double the number a decade ago.

Glasgow had 280 drug-related deaths in 2018, which is the highest rate at 0.30 per 1000 population based on a 2014-2018 average.

Police Scotland has now carried out eight days of action, which involved high-visibility patrols in the city centre and east end following concerns raised by people in the community and local businesses.

Plain-clothed officers were also sent to gather evidence.

The force believe enforcement alone will not solve the problem and has partnered with Glasgow's Health and Social Care Partnership, which includes the council, NHS and social work, to give people the best service specific to their needs.

STV News joined police officers on Tuesday to see the new strategy in action.

After seizing heroin and cannabis from a drug user, the man was not arrested and will instead be referred for support.

The crime, however, will be reported to the Procurator Fiscal.

Sergeant Stuart Ash stated: "This gentleman was detained and searched on suspicion.

"He was found in possession of heroin, and he was found in possession of two bags of herbal cannabis.

"That's led us to believe, obviously, that he has an addiction, and speaking to him, that is quite clearly the case.

"So what we're doing now is putting him onto a referral system - where we'll try and get him to engage with a multitude of different agencies in order to try and take him away from his addiction."

Sergeant Ash highlighted the dangerous state of nearby woodland, which is littered with drug paraphernalia.

He added: "Within this big derelict bit of land, we usually find a lot of drug dealers and drug users going in to use it.

"And they are going in there to use.

"The problem is it's the sheer volume of people that are using in that area.

"The ambulance crew and the police have got to go into that area and work where it's essentially littered with used needles - which causes real issues with us and paramedic staff.

"Some of the areas roundabout here have actually led to drug deaths where we've had to respond along with our colleagues in the paramedic."

The strategy will be developed and reviewed by looking at enforcement results, intelligence gathering, joint activity with outreach teams and referrals to the Positive Outcomes Project (POP).

POP is a team of police officers, Glasgow City Health and Social Care Partnership and the criminal justice charity Aid and Abet, which mentors and works with people who persistently offend to afford a substance addiction.

Feedback from the work will go to Police Scotland's national drug strategy group which will support the Scottish Government's Drugs Death Taskforce.

Austin Smith, from the Scottish Drugs Forum, said: "This is a positive move.

"If the policy is around a public health perspective, this is an important piece of progress towards that.

"But as a wider intervention, what we need to do is support people and find out why they're where they are and what support they need to move on from that lifestyle."