The crucial role of a safe home and wraparound support services

Having a home, a safe and secure place to be, is the essential foundation for living a good life. Just think of the things you would have difficulty doing without a permanent home – working, getting healthcare, receiving support from family and friends, and even being able to eat properly. For many though a home alone is not enough without a wraparound support service.

At Coastline Housing we see every week how hard life can be. That is why we run our Homeless Service, getting people out of street homelessness, and supporting them, initially providing a safe space, as they are assisted to move into more permanent accommodation.

It is also why we have Miners Court Extra Care, where our customers live independently in 64 self-contained flats with help from our Care and Support Team. Each resident has different needs, and we can tailor the support services we provide to them - including personal care, help with household tasks, and assisting with medication. For added peace of mind, every customer has an Apello digital response system, enabling them to have video calls with neighbours, let staff they are okay in the morning, and most importantly to get help from our team 24 hours a day.

To show the importance of a wrap-around service like Miners Court, I’m going to tell you the story of Alison. We supported her along a pathway to independent living when she moved in following a history of addiction.

At that time, she was dependent on a daily dose of methadone which our care team helped her to take under supervision. Alison was referred to Coastline’s Volunteer Scheme and the local Active Plus group. She understood that engaging with activities could improve her mental health. Starting to feel the benefits, Alison then then became a Miners Minder volunteer, befriending residents moving into Miners Court.

With her mental health seeing significant improvement, Alison decided she would like to help other residents so she started up takeaway evenings for everyone to get together. She also offered to support others in her own time.

Then Alison decided she would like to take the next key step in her recovery and reduce her methadone, so Coastline’s on-site management contacted the local We Are With You team. Working with her, the GP and a local pharmacy, a carefully structured plan was created to reduce the medication at a safe rate and with the correct support. Over time Alison’s dose was down to 5ml daily and she chose to take the last step to fully detox from methadone.

Our care management team at Miners Court helped to complete forms and assessments with Alison so she could be admitted to a rehab and detox centre. After one week of the three-week placement Alison wanted to return home to Miners Court, feeling it was her safe space where she could be surrounded by a familiar care team who would continue to support her.

Feeling she was in a great place, Alison decided it was the right time to move into her own home closer to her family. She applied for housing and is on the local waiting list so she can start a new chapter living independently.

Around the same time, she felt there was no longer a need for care and support. After a Mental Capacity Assessment was completed, it was agreed that Alison had full capacity and she chose to administer her own medication again. Eventually, after a review with Adult Social Care, she cancelled her care package as she wanted to live completely independently.

Our care and support staff at Miners Court continue to check in with Alison, and she is doing well.

Moving through a pathway like this is of course down to a person’s own commitment and hard work, but without the security of a home and support from a dedicated team, it would be very difficult to make such a difficult transition. At Coastline, we’re committed to being here to help people make changes to their lives.

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For more information on homelessless, visit: https://www.housinglin.org.uk/Topics/browse/Homelessness/

This blog has been published to coincide with Starts at Home Day 2024 (opens new window), celebrating the value of care and support services and the difference that having a safe and secure place to call home can make to people’s lives.