The scale of drug use and abuse in British society has contributed to a focus on treatment expansion and innovation. There has been an unusual coherence between the development of contemporary theories of drug abuse, models of the desistance process, and practical therapeutic tools. On the other hand, in the general field of offender rehabilitation, the scale of the crime problem has precipitated a response of punitiveness that has caused a prison population crisis that is sapping national corrections resources. An examination of what has happened in the drug field provides insights into the links between research evidence and policy development, theory and practice, as well as the potential impact of the uncritical acceptance of claims about what is effective. Drug policy and practice has been characterized by innovation and flexibility based on pragmatism and an awareness of the harms caused by strongly ideological, one-dimensional approaches. The author suggests that in the rehabilitation enterprise in general, the probation service should pursue a similar path that will permit more flexibility in responding to the needs of individual offenders based on their particular needs and multidisciplinary responses that produce the desired results. 35 references