Carl’s story
Carl* has a learning disability, severe behaviours that may challenge and cerebral palsy. Carl had a troublesome childhood and was in foster care from an early age, before arriving at Charnwood Lodge following a placement breakdown with another local specialist care home provider.
Carl would initially have daily incidents and staff began to manage his behaviours and anxiety. The traffic light system was used by staff to enable Carl to express his anxieties and needs.
Through person-centred care plans, the team focused on Carl’s interests and developing his daily living skills, including doing his own laundry and cooking twice a week. Carl's confidence began to increase and he even began researching different cooking ideas and menus online with staff support.
The incidents began to reduce significantly from daily to one a month, and eventually one a year. As a result of this, the one-to-one support with Carl was also reduced from 10 hours per day to five hours, due to him doing so well. We are currently working with Carl to further develop his independence skills, with the aim for him to successfully move into a local supported living service in the near future.
Lisa’s story
Lisa* arrived at Charnwood Lodge following a placement breakdown with another local specialist care home provider. Lisa has a learning disability and a history of presenting with behaviours that may challenge.
Following a comprehensive assessment process, detailed person-centred plans were developed working closely with Lisa and other key stakeholders. Staff also used a range of techniques to manage Lisa’s behaviour, and found that one-to-one time with Lisa and giving her the time to talk really helped. As Charnwood Lodge is also located in a rural setting, staff would often go for walks with Lisa.
As part of the person-centred plans and support for Lisa, there was a focus on developing her independence and daily living skills. This included shopping, cooking and personal care. Charnwood Lodge also had a Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) Practitioner on-site regularly and a Psychologist who visited the service once a week, which further helped manage Lisa’s anxieties and behaviours.
As a result of the support provided at Charnwood Lodge, Lisa successfully transitioned into a supported living service in the local community. Since then, Lisa has moved into her own house, is now married and has two children.
*Names have been changed to maintain confidentiality.