Become a Supported Lodgings provider

Accommodation is required in Carmarthenshire. The young person will need his or her own room with a bed and storage for clothing and other possessions. They will need access to kitchen and bathroom, and the living rooms, though these can be shared with other members of the household.

The young person should feel “at home” in the accommodation and should be able to invite friends/family at reasonable times and by agreement with you. The lodgings provider must provide the young person with his or her own front door key.

It is not intended that the young person should become ‘part of the family’. Rather, the young person is to be encouraged towards independence.

This can vary but most placements are expected to last from six months to two years. When a placement ends, you may like to take a break, or you may wish to become immediately available for a new placement.

There is a fixed 28-day notice period if you feel that the role is no longer suitable for you or the placement (unless there is an immediate safeguarding issue).

All holidays would also require 28 day’s notice.

Support requirements will vary between young people. It is useful to keep in mind that the long-term aim of support is to enable the personal development of the young person and to prepare them for independent living.

The supported lodgings provider will work with professionals involved in the young person’s care and support to ensure the young person is at the center of any support  and care planning with the aim to empower the young person to achieving the best positive outcomes for their future.

Typical support needs to include:

• Advice with budgeting and benefits
• Advice and assistance with food shopping and cooking
• Instruction in the safe use of household appliances
• Assistance with arranging and keeping appointments
• Assistance with maintaining attendance at training, college or work
• Support in maintaining and building relationships with family/friends/neighbours
• Support in managing visitors
• Assistance with maintaining the security of the house
• Encouragement to comply with “house rules”
• Chatting and providing a “listening ear”
• Participation in meetings
• Continual Commutation/recording regarding necessary information relating to the young person and placement.

Support does not need to be formally structured or timetabled, but it is important for the young person to know that support is there when needed. Support needs are likely to be highest in the early weeks, when the young person and provider are getting to know one another.

• The young person should participate in planning and discussions about the placement so that a contract about house rules and agreed standards of behaviour can be negotiated before the young person moves in.
• The young person should respect “house rules” as agreed.
• The young person should treat the property and its contents with respect and should have regard for the security of the property.
• The young person should take responsibility for his or her behaviour both inside and outside the provider’s home.
• It the young person experiences difficulties in the placement they should let the provider or support worker know.

Before asking you to take a young person into your home, we will carry out an assessment during which you will have the opportunity to explore the kind of young person that would fit into your household.

We will also advise you of any areas of risk to your family at this stage. The, choice whether to accommodate the young person is yours.

After the young person has moved in, SPL Team will check and will make regular appointments to meet the young person along with any other professionals who may be involved in the care and support of the young person.

The SPL Team is your support and is there to answer any queries you may have. You will get to know the young person well and if you have concerns about them, you should discuss these with the SPL Team who will then liaise with the young person and any other professionals involved in their care and support.

From time to time, there will be a “review” meeting where you, the young person, the SPL Team and any other professionals involved in the care and support of the young person can talk together about the way things are going, change “house rules”, set new goals. In addition, adequate out of hours professional support is available and will be easily accessible, training will also be provided.

You will receive an allowance of £200.00 weekly plus a £20 service charge. Post 18 years part of this will come from the Housing Benefit received by the young person.

In addition to this:

• full training is provided
• mileage you may cover,
• wellbeing package-for provider and young person i.e., leisure/recreational facilities access

We cannot guarantee placements, so it may not be appropriate to rely on income from the provision of accommodation.

The allowance you will receive includes the provision for you to upgrade your household insurance. It is important for you to inform your insurers what the project entails.

If you are claiming Income-based state benefits such as Jobseeker’s Allowance, Income Support, ESA, Housing Benefit, etc., some benefits may be affected by income received through this scheme.

To clarify your individual circumstances, you need to discuss with the Benefits Agency, the Citizens Advice Bureau .

If your council tax is discounted for single occupancy, your discount will be unaffected unless a young person reaches the age of eighteen whilst staying with you. In this case you should inform your local council, as you may no longer qualify for the discount.

Someone who:

• Can get on with young people and has some understanding of the problems they experience.
• Will be able to support a young person in their efforts to grow and develop
• Will be sympathetic and not make judgements about a young person
• Knows where their own boundaries lie, and can be clear and ‘up-front’ about types of behaviour they want / do not want in their home
• Can respect the confidentiality and privacy of any young person living in their home
• Will treat all young people equally and not discriminate against them on any grounds.

Anyone can come forward with an offer of supported lodgings. No one will be discriminated against on grounds of race, gender, sexual orientation or age. However, you may not be considered if the following apply:

• If you have been convicted of an offence against a child
  
• If you have recently had a child removed from your care by order of any court
  
• If you have had a registration as a childminder, or other day care, cancelled due to misconduct
  
• If you have recently had your rights and duties with respect to any child investigated by a local authority

The Supported Lodgings Team will visit you to:

• Assess the accommodation
• Complete assessment documentation
• Discuss with you what it would be like to have a young person living in your home

Additional visits will usually be made, all the members of the household will need to be visited and where appropriate assessment documentation completed for each of them.

Police checks will also be completed on all adults living in the household. You will be asked to provide referees to provide references, the referees must know you well and are willing to say there is no known reason why you might not be suited to support a young person in your own home.

You will be asked to give consent to a medical to confirm there is no known medical reason why you should not participate in the scheme.

When assessment and security checks have been completed and references received, your name will be put forward for approval by the selection panel.

As soon as you are approved, young people can be placed with you.

Continuous and on-going support will be available from the SPL Team. During the assessment process, any training needs will be identified, and a plan put in place. On-going and additional training will also be made available to you.