There remains uncertainty as to the future level of Supporting People funding and although reviews have now been completed in all areas, the outcomes are still awaited. It is uncertain whether the existing support levels will be maintained which may have an effect on the amount of individual support that can be provided.

In partnership with Progress Housing Group, five Liverpool properties were refurbished during the year with a further two purchased to replace housing no longer deemed as suitable. A further property was identified through Liverpool City Council for an individual who had requested to live alone. Another existing property which had become vacant was identified as the new home for three women referred by Liverpool Social Services Department for supported living.

Following the publication of Liverpool’s Housing Strategy, plans have been drawn up to transform a six person home which had two vacancies to one providing four self contained flats for independent living. These plans were formulated after consultation with the tenants and Riverside Housing Association.

During 2005/6 our aim is to complete the refurbishment or reprovision of remaining properties in addition to responding to requests to set up new services.

IT equipment has been upgraded at Imageink based at New Century Halls and the "Liverten News" became the regular newsletter serving Liverpool tenants.

In St Helens and Knowsley there has been a programme of refurbishing properties carried out by the main housing provider Alternative Housing. Three properties are registered as care homes rather than supported living services however wherever possible the philosophy employed is that of supported living. It is unlikely that a successful cancellation of registration will occur in the near future as the criteria for such cases has become less clear following legal judgements in these matters.

The main aim for those living in St Helens and Knowsley is to ensure that their accommodation remains mobility friendly. An increasing number of people now experience difficulties in managing stairs or require wheel chair access.

A new service for an individual living on his own was commissioned by St Helens Social Services after a successful tender bid. There is evidence that more of this type of service will be required in the future as opposed to group living.

A range of daily activities exist in the St Helens and Knowsley area and through the Lifestyle Coordinator a number of initiatives have been developed to include people in mainstream services. An example of these include attending music sessions, arts and crafts, tea dances and a range of other activities involving members of the local community as well as people from other organisations. A key factor in arranging these events is the choice and control individuals have in deciding whether or not to attend.

As in Liverpool, a Tenants Forum was established and meets on a monthly basis to discuss issues that are of concern but also to share information and experiences. The success of these forums is dependent on the support each person receives to actively take part in the discussions and the work of support staff is acknowledged in this respect.

To enable more opportunities for people to experience a wider range of lifestyle opportunities an increasing number of tenants are taking advantage of the Motability scheme to acquire their own vehicles and are therefore enjoying more appropriate and flexible transport arrangement.

In partnership with Sutton High Sports College in St Helen’s we organised a Sports day for the second time.

Throughout the year a positive partnership has been developed with Myerscough College based at Croxteth Park in Liverpool. A number of our service users attended a variety of courses run at the park whilst students of the college have undertaken part of their studies within the Horticulture department at Thingwall Hall. The first academic year proved extremely successful and plans are underway to develop these arrangements further.

Our second Life Arts Festival took place in September 2004 and this again proved popular amongst service users, staff, families and friends. External judges selected the prize winners and 12 pieces were photographed to be included in our 2005 calendar. Arrangements are being made for another exhibition to be held in September 2005.

Plans for the partial redevelopment of the Thingwall site are still with the planning authorities. It is hoped that outline planning permission can be granted and more detailed plans can then be drawn-up for those services which will remain at Thingwall Hall. Discussions with all stakeholders will be a priority once the outline plans have been approved.

As a result of a greater level of personal income, people in supported living arrangements are now beginning to see the benefit of this type of support. Many are now exercising real choice in the way they spend their leisure time and holidays abroad are a reality for more and more people. In addition they have more money at their disposal for buying clothes or items of personal equipment for their homes. The nature of the support we are now required to give tenants includes a far greater input into managing household and personal budgets than was previously the case.

Discussions took place with leading health scheme providers, Westfield, to introduce a health care programme that would be accessible to all staff and would include an employee assistance programme. This service was introduced on 1st April 2005.

During 2004 arrangements under the Protection of Vulnerable Adults (POVA) came into force which now makes it illegal to employ anyone without checking to see if they are listed as being unfit to work with vulnerable adults. We are also obliged to report anyone to the Department of Health who we believe poses a potential threat. The interpretation and practical aspects of this legislation has required revised policies on protection issues to be formulated and communicated to all staff. Not surprisingly there was a high level of concern raised by staff in these new procedures and we continue to work sensitively but firmly in meeting the new requirements.

The Staff Training and Development Department continued to address the demands placed on us to ensure that people fulfil the requirement to complete the induction and foundation elements as laid down by the Learning Disability Awards Framework (LDAF).

In addition more people completed their National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) awards and we are progressing steadily towards the target levels set down by government. Early in 2005 two key members of the Training Department left and this led us to consider how we meet the NVQ targets in the future. An appraisal exercise was carried out to evaluate whether or not we believed a more suitable solution would be to outsource the NVQ training. The result of the exercise was to invite a local training agency, Learning Alternatives, to carry out this work for us. A further evaluation of these arrangements will take place towards the end of 2005.
During 2004/5 a gradual upgrade of our IT equipment took place and an increasing number of staff have access to PC’s or laptops. We believe the use of IT will continue to expand and during 2005/6 a review of our software systems will take place. It is also likely that some significant hardware replacements will have to be made which will require specific resource provision.

The challenge ahead will be the continued development of supported living whilst at the same time managing a potential resource reduction.

The agenda set by "Valuing People" is still relevant but the publication of the Green Paper "Independence, Well Being and Choice" and the proposals contained within it will eventually add a further dynamic to the way services are commissioned and provided in the future.