The Iceni project offers addicts counselling, with an emphasis on acupuncture and relaxation techniques.

Suffolk Probation Service's Nick Jay said it now refers clients to the project for therapeutic treatment.

An Iceni spokesman said it has one of the highest number of drug addict referrals from Ipswich courts.

"We're not a punitive organisation, it's about accepting people where they're at now and not just what they've done in the past," the Iceni's Brian Tobin said.

"Our whole philosophy looks at what's underpinning the addiction rather than just treating the symptoms of it and I think that's made us so successful."

The charity also trains NHS drug workers.