Supporting people to find a place to live
We support people to find the home that is right for them enabling people to live where and with whom they choose. Our experienced property sourcing and developments team are experts at sourcing high quality, value for money properties for the people we support.
Independence underpins our ethos. We support people in such a way that they are able to live in their home and manage their tenancy with as much independence as possible. We focus on building people’s confidence and motivation. We work with them to develop their skills to their full potential, for example, helping people to look after their homes, manage their finances or engage in their local community.
We know that finding the right specialist housing for people with learning disabilities can be challenging – our team working with expert housing partners, are there to take the strain. For many people we support this may be either their first home on their own or back in the community after time in hospital – so it is vital they are reassured we can support them to navigate their way through the process.
Identifying the right home
Whether the individual is looking for home on their own, to share with others or a room in a care home our team work with each individual and their circle of support to find just the right property. We ensure people have choice and stay in control in relation to all aspects of their home; where they live, who they live with and what facilities and décor their home has.
Our robust processes and checklists, available in accessible formats, ensure:
- personalised housing requirements, such as adaptations required, are well understood
- risk and occupational therapy assessments are completed
- affordability is understood up front
- everyone is clear on roles and responsibilities
- individuals are prepared for transition and/ or step-down
Housing partners
We have built effective working relationships with more than 50 housing associations and registered social landlords as well as with letting agents and investor partners who understand specialised housing needs and who share our values. As an experienced supported living provider, although we provide housing-related support to help people maintain their tenancy, we make sure that we work within the guidelines of the Real Tenancy Test to separate tenancy and support. Our partners will:
- Buy, rent, adapt or build a property to suit bespoke requirements.
- Support people to access enhanced housing benefit and ensure their home is affordable
- Help people to set up and manage their tenancy whether renting the home from a private landlord or housing association.
Contingency and forward planning
Our operational and business development managers work closely with commissioners, CCGs, Transforming Care Partnerships and NHS England to understand pipelines of need, capital grant opportunities, strategic developments, and commissioning priorities. This partnership approach helps us develop properties which match commissioners’ future needs.
Working closely with commissioners and other partners helps us make robust plans with built-in contingencies. For example, before purchasing and adapting a property, we consider potential difficulties (e.g. if the intended occupant has to return to secure accommodation because of escalating needs or breaking their conditions of release), and how to overcome these, such as by selecting a property which, while meeting the individual’s needs, would also be appropriate for other people in the client group (e.g. not overlooked, set back from roads and footpaths, adequate parking for multiple staff, not located near schools).
Asset-based approach
Our asset-based approach ensures we make the best use of local infrastructure to support successful placements. For example, we may develop new supported living services near to established Voyage Care services in the local area so teams can work across high-demand and lower-demand services, supporting workforce resilience and retention. Co-locating services can also help reduce eventual reliance on paid support by, for example, using assistive technology and on-call support from neighbouring location if people progress to no longer needing overnight support. We also map other local community assets so the people we support can make best use of all local facilities and services to enable them to live the life they want to live.
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