Blog
Wednesday, 10 October 2018 10:51
"Sharing everyday life got me through tough times"
Written by Phoebe Rowell
"I was living in Derby when my relationship got worse and turned more violent. I turned to alcohol as an escape and ended up living on the streets. The police picked me up and took me to hospital. I was in a bad way. After my detox, the mental health team were talking about me returning home and going to a day centre for support. But my ex-partner was still around, so I didn't really want to go home. That was when I first heard about Shared Lives scheme. They were in the meeting and suggested that living with a…
Tuesday, 28 August 2018 15:05
“I never dreamt of being so independent again”
Written by Phoebe Rowell
Steve tells us his story: “I was living with my partner, running a B&B when I had a serious stroke and later two minor heart attacks. After four months in hospital, I was depressed, frail and my memory and cognition had deteriorated. We knew I needed more support with daily living than my partner could provide. I was unable to return home and it made me frightened about my future, with clinicians uncertain about my further recovery. I wanted to live locally, so I could continue seeing my partner and I missed my dogs. The Shared Lives scheme matched me,…
Thursday, 09 August 2018 11:43
Developing a supportive housing model for survivors of domestic abuse
Written by Phoebe Rowell
Natalie Blagrove is a Senior Knowledge Hub Advisor at SafeLives. For the last six months she's been seconded to work with us on a new pilot to develop and test supportive housing options for survivors of domestic abuse. I recently wrote about the domestic abuse project; six months on I thought it was time for an update. It’s been busy, with some real highlights as well as some challenges. The good stuff Supported by the local domestic abuse services, I visited two of the pilot sites to hold survivor consultations. It’s so important to get the thoughts, ideas and opinions…
Tony Kirby and Darren Brooks talked about their Shared Life together with MPs at our recent parliamentary reception. Their humour had everyone laughing. "I'm Tony Kirby, and I’m a Shared Lives carer. I’m here today with my wife Jane, who is also a Shared Lives carer, along with Darren. Darren, who through the Shared Lives scheme has now lived with us for almost a year. We were first introduced to Shared Lives in 2015 and were immediately impressed by the support and dedication their staff showed. Not only to the people who need their support, but to their team of…
Monday, 02 July 2018 10:29
We need to give more people a chance of happiness, like the happiness that Shared Lives gave to me
Written by Phoebe Rowell
Meg spoke to MPs at our parliamentary reception about her experience of Shared Lives. She wants you to hear her story. Hello, my name is Meg and I’d like you to take a moment. Think of something you deeply regret. Think of a time where you’ve behaved inappropriately or something cringey you did when you were drunk… Now think of those words you’ve cursed in rage when someone cut you up at the junction. Now imagine if all of these things were: Written downRecordedAnalysedScrutinised. Now most of us in this room look like trouble, a risk. Remember, there’s nothing about…
Thursday, 21 June 2018 10:43
Our relationship is built on a solid foundation of equality and mutual respect
Written by Phoebe Rowell
Hello everyone, my name is Chris. And my name is Ali. And Chris has lived for 3 years with myself, my husband and 2 mad dogs under the watchful eye of the very excellent Birmingham Shared Lives scheme. So what can we tell you about ourselves? To be honest I read all these things from Shared Lives Plus – the magazines, press releases and all the inspirational stories about the amazing things that people in Shared Lives have achieved. And every time I think to myself “ well me and Chris haven’t done anything like that” and I feel like a…
Monday, 18 June 2018 12:59
Social care’s birthday present looks like continued cuts
Written by Alex Fox
Birthday presents for some We’re celebrating the start of Shared Lives week, just as the Prime Minister announces a 70th birthday present for the NHS: £20 billion a year in extra funding by 2023. The NHS being 70 means that social care is 70 too: they were created at the same time, but social care’s birthday present looks likely to be continued cuts. The public – and therefore the politicians they elect – value what they can understand. We understand doctors and nurses healing or curing us, so we’re grateful for what they do. Radical kindness Social care is still…
Monday, 14 May 2018 13:20
Homeshare - why sharing your home is becoming mainstream
Written by Phoebe Rowell
Today marks the launch of the evaluation of the two year national Homeshare partnership, funded by the Lloyds Bank Foundation and Big Lottery Fund. It’s been the most significant two years in the development of Homeshare in the UK: £2m invested, eight new programmes created, with a dozen more benefiting from the partnership which has established infrastructure, evidence, new approaches and more sustainable practices. So what have we learnt? Alex Fox, CEO Shared Lives Plus reflects on the Homeshare partnership programme: Florence is 95 and Alexandra is 27. Their Homeshare story has been watched more than 25 million times The challenge…
Wednesday, 28 March 2018 15:26
Sam meets the first minister - Shared Lives launches 100 Lives
Written by Michael Kazich
Babs Lewis, Wales Development Manager, recaps on a great day launching the State of Shared Lives in Wales Last week. On Thursday March 22nd, Shared Lives carers from all over Wales and the people they support met up with Huw Irranca-Davies, Minister for Social Care, to launch our latest State of The Nation Wales Report. The Minister gave us a warm welcome, even sacrificing his lunch hour to see us when his meetings over-ran. He’s a real supporter of Shared Lives and we look forward to working with him again this year. And before returning home Samantha Hall and her…
In this blog, Ali Hall, Development Officer for Young People in Transition, responds to the second part of the Care Quality Commission's (CQC) review of children and young people. She thinks the findings are sobering but welcome, and call for the sort of approach that Shared Lives is well-placed to provide. Last week the Care Quality Commission (CQC) published ‘Are we listening?’, the phase two report of their review of children and young people’s mental health services. CQC were asked to conduct this review by the prime minister in January 2017. The phase one report summarises what is currently known…
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Domestic abuse is prevalent; one in four women and one in six men will be victims of domestic abuse in their life time. Finding the right place to live can be a huge challenge for victims and survivors: finding housing, keeping it, ensuring it’s safe and appropriate. I’m Natalie and I currently work for a national domestic abuse charity called SafeLives. I have worked in the domestic abuse sector for over ten years and I’ve just been seconded to Shared Lives Plus to work on a new domestic abuse project. Funded by the ‘tampon tax’, we’re going to be working…
Friday, 15 December 2017 12:23
A man's home is his castle? - developing Shared Lives down under
Written by Phoebe Rowell
In this blog, Executive Director, Anna McEwen, shares her experience about taking Shared Lives to Australia In October, I was lucky enough to travel to Adelaide in South Australia to work with The Australian Centre for Social Innovation (TACSI) and the Wyatt Trust (a grant funder organisation). I have been talking with Carolyn Curtis, CEO of TACSI, for around three years while they have watched how Shared Lives has grown in the UK. As an innovation charity, they have been considering how they could bring the model to Australia where currently people are mainly supported in traditional and more institutional…
Thursday, 09 November 2017 17:48
Signs of Scotland’s changing social care - the canary and the coalmine collapse
Written by Ben Hall
National leaders need to listen as 17,000 people in care home doubt High quality care homes stop offering residential care for older people Scotland needs new ways to support and care for people 17,000 people who live in, or receive care from Britain’s second largest care home operator, Four Seasons, are today left in doubt about where they live, as the private equity firm Terra Firma pleads with lenders to approve a financial rescue package for it. Four Seasons was saddled with huge debts to its own owners after they bought the care provider in 2012. This £220m debt, loaned…
Wednesday, 23 November 2016 15:18
I wanted to give a whistle stop tour of my first month at Shared Lives Plus…
Written by Michael Kazich
I wanted to give a whistle stop tour of my first month at Shared Lives Plus… Our new Shared Lives Consultancy and Development Manager, Emma Clarke wanted to write a staff blog after her first month with Shared Lives Plus. My induction so far has been full of variety, from time spent in Liverpool being introduced to office based colleagues and my very swanky laptop, to attending the Parliamentary event during Shared Lives week, where I was given the joyous task of MP-spotting as keeper of the attendance list – not an easy activity given…