Barrington House achieve their Autism Accreditation!

Barrington House, our residential care home in Ayrshire and Arran, has been accredited by the National Autistic Society (NAS) for their specialist support for autistic people!

The NAS describe the Autism Accreditation as the “…UK’s only autism-specific quality assurance programme of support and development for all those providing services to autistic people. It is a way for organisations to show they offer excellent support to autistic children and adults.”

Raj Rajamony, Voyage Care’s autism specialism implementer, said, “The team at Barrington House have worked tirelessly during a challenging year to meet the standards set out by the NAS. Their support and dedication towards their autistic residents are very person-centred and responsive to their specific needs.”

Let’s take a closer look at how they achieved their Autism Accreditation…

1. High quality staff training

Comprehensive staff training is pivotal to providing great quality care and support. At Voyage Care, all our staff learn about autism and those working at autism specialist services also undertake additional advanced autism training. This is coupled with observational learning and ongoing mentoring with a more experienced team member.

Our training ensures that each support worker at Barrington House, and our other autism specialist services, understands each person’s strengths, personal preferences, likes and dislikes and much more. This training will also involve personalised autism specific assessments, personal autism and sensory profiles, environmental assessments and communication plans. For example, the team complete engagement plans, which provides the opportunity for staff to reflect on support provided and give feedback.

2. Person-centered support

At the core of the person-centered support that Barrington House provides is understanding residents’ individual needs. They talk to the residents, their loved ones and external professionals to help understand how best to support each person to live how they choose.

This knowledge then feeds into a detailed autism support plan, which is a carefully considered action plan that explains how we can support the individual. This plan is regularly reviewed and updated as the resident progresses, learns new skills and develops their independence.

3. Communication

Communication is vital at Barrington House and within the autism support plan, there is also a communication plan. It describes how the resident prefers to communicate. This may include verbal and non-verbal communication, such as objects of reference, symbols, written lists, modelling, exaggerated facial expressions or even the use of song – whatever suits the individual!

Plus, there is a regular house meeting, where residents can share their feedback as a household . This also provides opportunities for everyone to work on their communication skills in group settings.

Finally, Barrington House have regular coffee mornings with families to chat about quality of care and opportunities for residents. This is alongside their open-door policy for family visits*.

4. Creative solution finding

Sometimes the team must think outside the box, and COVID-19 is a great example of this. When the March 2020 lockdown prevented residents from their usual routines in the community, the team had to find a creative solution. They quickly created a tuck shop to replace daily visits to the shops. This enabled the residents to continue to develop their skills, such as money management and choice making.

They also introduced the Barrington Bar when the local pub was unable to open, it even included karaoke! This was useful because it helped the house to continue to have fun together, strengthen friendships and continue with vital routines.

5. A great team!

Finally, it goes without saying that this NAS accreditation couldn’t have been achieved with the fantastic teamwork and dedication at Barrington View. Each team member genuinely cares about the residents and helping them to live their best lives, and it shows. They go the extra mile to explore new fun and creative activities, enabling the residents to increase their confidence and independence. They are always eager to learn new approaches and evaluate the support provided to make sure it’s the very best it can be.

Find out more about Barrington House

Barrington House is our 30^th service at Voyage Care to achieve an NAS accreditation. It reflects the excellent support they provide to individuals with autism.

Barrington House supports up to seven people and is a sociable residential care home, which is wheelchair accessible. To find out more about Barrington House and their current room vacancy, please visit their service page.

*During the COVID-19 pandemic, these visits are guided by Government advice.

Investor