Drug addicts in Oxford are being left on the streets and relying on crime because a treatment centre remains closed seven months after it was due to reopen.

That is the view of a former member of staff at the Oxford Drugs Recovery Project, which closed its base in Walton Street, Jericho, in October last year.

The substance misuse worker, who asked to remain anonymous, said the project had carved out an excellent reputation for its ability to help addicts get clean.

The project was a partnership between the English Churches Housing Group, the Luther Street Medical Centre and the Oxfordshire Drugs and Alcohol Action Team (DAAT), designed to provide "residential support and in-patient detoxification for rough sleepers and homeless people".

A 2002 review of the service by Oxfordshire County Council stated: "The project provides a high standard of service for this difficult-to-reach group of people that are often excluded from treatment services."

The former worker said: "I met a magistrate recently who said the project carried a lot of weight with them and its rate of success was well known to them. I was told they used to put the sentencing of criminals on hold if they had applied to be housed or get treatment at the project."

In October, the contract to run the centre was put out to tender and was subsequently won by Smart CJS, based in Cutteslowe, North Oxford.

It had planned to reopen the project in Banbury in February but, seven months on, nothing has emerged.

The former worker continued: "Smart is a wonderful organisation, but they have had to start from scratch. I think society has lost out, not just the addicts.

"It is a chain reaction and some of them had a £200- or £300-a-day habit which they financed by criminal means."

A spokesman for Oxford- shire Primary Care Trust, which runs the DAAT, said: "Smart CJS were awarded the new contract last year and, as part of the process, are securing suitable premises for the new project, as the premises in Oxford city are no longer available.

"A potential new site has been identified by Smart CJS but is subject to planning approval and renovation works.

"While the project is temporarily closed, individuals requiring residential detoxification continue to be assessed by the residential rehabilitation team and Oxfordshire DAAT has put additional funding in place"