One Support launched a personalisation pilot at Bevatone House in November 2010, a brand new purpose built supported housing service for people with complex mental health needs in Barnet. Following the pilot, One Support has released a report outlining the findings of the pilot which was hugely successful and is now standard practice at Bevatone House.
The model gives customers greater choice and control over the support they receive. According to the results, this makes a significant impact on their lives and represents an annual saving of almost £300,000 for the local authority. Bevatone House was designed, and services are being delivered by, One Support, the care and support arm of Housing Group, one of London’s leading providers of housing, care and support.
The personalisation scheme aims to improve customers’ life skills, independence and self-esteem and reduce costs to the local authority associated with high support residential care placements. The model uses customer ‘Flexi Hours’ which allow customers to vary the level and type of support they receive. Bevatone House combines high quality accommodation, a range of ‘core’ support services and a ‘menu’ of additional individual support services to ensure a holistic package of support.
Kevin Beirne, Group Director of Housing, Care and Support at One Housing Group, said: “At a time when Government cuts are threatening the survival of many community-based care services, the findings of our report show that local authorities can save money while providing a higher quality service with better customer results. Bevatone is a place that anyone would choose to live themselves. It’s a comfortable homely environment which inspires it’s customers to brighter futures.”
Maggie Goff, Head of Mental Health and Practice, London Borough of Barnet, said: “London Borough of Barnet is delighted to have been part of this bold and innovative scheme, which has achieved remarkable success in a short space of time. Not only
have we seen costs reduced dramatically, but this pilot has also improved the lives of its residents in helping them to develop important life skills and in improving their engagement with the local community. We hope that personalised care plans such
as this one will soon be the norm, rather than the exception, in local authorities across the UK.”
Today’s report shows that all residents taking part in the pilot scheme have shown marked improvement in reaching their personal goals – from social inclusion to securing voluntary work. The scheme has also delivered significant cost savings by providing an alternative to long term placements in residential care.
One Support now plans to adapt the personalisation model for use in other supported housing schemes.