Pathway to Independence Service, Heather Court

Havering has a need for supported accommodation for young people who are leaving care, at risk, offending or at risk of offending or misusing substances. Equally, young people leaving the family home after irretrievable family breakdown or abusive situations have needs of supported accommodation within Havering.

Heather Court accommodates young people aged 18 to 25 years of age, providing a valuable resource to support to achieve full independence in Havering and is an important element of the wider portfolio of options for providing young people with supported accommodation.

The aim of this service is to enable young people to move towards independence by providing access to short term accommodation with targeted support to develop appropriate life skills that will enable them to manage successfully in their own accommodation.

The London Borough of Havering is looking for a Service Provider who can demonstrate an innovative, creative and flexible approach to the delivery of targeted support that places the individual at the heart of the process, involves individuals in choices about their support and promotes independence, dignity and choice at all times.

Key service objectives include:

 Providing planned, targeted support to help the service user to increase control over their daily life and develop the necessary skills to move to more independent living such as personal hygiene/health, cooking, meal planning, healthy eating, laundry, cleaning etc.

 providing enabling support based on clearly identified individual needs and risk assessments

 developing an Individual Support Plan with each service user, clearly identifying individual outcomes, that is reviewed on a regular basis, not less than twice each year or whenever needs and risk assessments identify significant changes

 ensuring that no service user is either left at risk without the provision of adequate support or is put at risk by not being provided with support in accordance with their support plan

 preserving and improving the health, safety and the welfare of each service user

 promoting the ability of each service user to live independently in his/her own home

 providing support which is proactive (and preventative) rather than reactive and which therefore identifies cases where service users need additional or reduced services

 providing support in a planned and agreed way, clearly seeking outcomes, rather than in an 'ad hoc' on demand way

 assisting service users who have increased their skills and require less support to move to more independent living

 proactively managing risk with regard to service user lifestyles and activities rather than being paternalistic, protective or risk averse