WHAT IS SUPPORTIVE HOUSING?
Supportive housing is often described as a scheme whereby individuals thought to be ‘in need’, are provided with accommodation and sometimes additional support or care services, in order to help them live happy, independent lives. This form of supported accommodation is fairly adaptable in that it can be provided for differing periods of time as and when it is required. For those looking to gain the emotional and practical living skills needed to move on to other forms of housing, a short term solution will probably suffice.
Whereas those who require a longer-term form of supportive housing might require a more ongoing form of support in order to live their lives as independently as possible. Individuals seeking supported accomodation come from all walks of life.
From those with disabilities or learning difficulties needing help with daily life skills, to those suffering with poor mental health who quite often require more specialised mental health supportive housing in some shape or form.
Whatever the need for supportive housing, the overall aim is to make social inclusion a key part of the service, and to ensure each individual is made to feel like a valued member of their community.
SUPPORTED ACCOMODATION AT ACE 24
The supportive housing we provide at Ace 24 has a number of care homes across Essex, with a number of key amenities and transport links close by. Each of our homes are beautifully furnished with Sky TV and wireless internet as standard as well as sporting amenities and gardens where possible, meaning all of our residents are provided with a good quality of life. Our supportive housing properties can be found in Essex and with such a wide range of properties to chose from we are able to provide for a variety of different needs and requirements.
Our residents’ time in our supported accommodation is designed to instil a sense of belonging, where a friendly sense of family is encouraged. To ensure the very best welfare for our residents, all of our supportive housing complies with fire safety, health and safety as well as other relational security regulations.
But perhaps above all of the practicalities comes our extensive experience in providing support across three key areas of enablement, namely daily living skills, social skills and help into employment. Working closely with individuals staying in our supportive housing within each of these areas is imperative to providing not only a safe home, but also a real opportunity for a better quality of life in the long term.
OUR SUPPORTIVE HOUSING REFERRAL PROCESS
At Ace 24 we accept supportive housing referrals made by voluntary, statutory and private sectors. Once a referral has been received, an initial assessment will be carried out in order to decide which level of support is needed for the applicant. This initial assessment will include a home-visit to the service user’s current place of residence before any form of supported accommodation is allocated.
A key part of the initial assessment will also be to decide whether the applicants needs can be met by our team, in conjunction with their respective families and care managers. Whilst we do aim to take on as many referrals as we can, we do have an exclusion criteria in place which details those cases we are unable to accommodate at this time. Our supportive housing team work closely to ensure all of our service users provide the best possible service. If you are interested in supported accommodation or mental health supportive housing in any form, please contact us for more information.