Help is on the way for the sober (5)
I believe the answer is:
staid
'sober' is the definition.
(synonyms)
'help is on the way for the' is the wordplay.
'help' becomes 'aid' (synonyms).
'is on' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'the way' becomes 's' (Compass direction - South).
'for' says to put letters next to each other.
'the' becomes 't' (the is pronounced as a 't' sound in some dialects).
's'+'t'='st'
'aid' after 'st' is 'STAID'.
(Other definitions for staid that I've seen before include "Serious or sober in character" , "Sedate and serious" , "Stuffy, traditional" , "Sedate, decorous" , "Sedate, sober" .)