Supported Accommodation and Outreach Support

What Service Do We Provide?
Our committed team of Community Link Workers visit the tenants and give them support in many areas of their lives.
Examples of these areas are:

• Learning to shop and cook
• Managing money and budgeting
• Maintaining a home
• Help with benefits and finances
• Encouraging a social life, making friends and accessing the community
• Maintaining family links

At Equality Housing we have a person-centred ethos and encourage our tenants to live a full and active life. Not only do we work to improve people’s practical skills but we also want to see our tenants develop emotionally and socially to increase their confidence and enjoy life! We promote personal choice within all aspects of their support and consultation and participation in the development of Equality Housing.

Many of our tenants are in full or part-time employment or have voluntary jobs, attend college or have other day activities. Tenants are encouraged to make use of local community leisure activities and services.

We encourage and facilitate our tenants to take an active part in all decision making in Equality Housing and Barnet Mencap. They hold their own monthly House Meetings and have bigger Tenant Meetings every 3 months. There is also an Equality Housing Steering Group which has elected tenant representatives. We want our tenants' views and opinions to be heard and taken notice of.

We currently have vacancies in one or more of our shared houses! Please contact us for information if you or somebody you know might be interested in moving into one of our supported accommodation properties! Please take a look at our brochure to find out more.

Can I Be Considered As A Future Tenant Of A Shared House?
A shared house is where a small group of people share a home together but the tenants still have their own independence. Potential tenants must also be aware of common dangers, have good road sense, and be able to communicate and to manage their personal needs. From time to time tenants move within Equality Housing or on to a more supported situation or to greater independence.
Once a person becomes an Equality Housing tenant they will work with staff to agree an individual programme of support. This is reviewed regularly by staff and the tenant.

Here's what our tenants say about the service...

As well as supporting people within the project we also provide an outreach service supporting people in their own homes.

Equality Housing offers a holistic approach to support. This means that the support we offer is designed to help you in all the different aspects of your daily life and looks at your practical, physical, emotional and social wellbeing.

We offer a key worker system that means you will have one main worker who will work closely with you. The advantages of this means you get to know and build a good working relationship with this person and they get to know and understand you and how best to work with you. The kind of things we can support you with are:

• Helping you to monitor and manage your finances: setting up direct debits, working out a budget, reducing debts, maximising your income
• Helping you with benefit applications, reviews and any issues arising

• Support to increase your shopping and cooking skills
• Helping you to monitor and manage your health and medication: understand your health needs, attend health appointments, liaise with health professionals on your behalf
• Co-ordinating all your care and support needs
• Make referrals on your behalf and arrange and attend review meetings
• All tenancy/housing issues such as: reporting repairs, maintaining your home, paying rent, applying for Housing Benefit
• Emotional support
• Helping facilitate and mediate relationships with friends and families
• Raising concerns (including safeguarding)
• Help you to understand how to keep yourself safe inside and outside of your home
• Reducing isolation and building social contacts

If you are interested in finding out more about Equality Housing or using our services please contact Lucy Clifford (Manager) via projectsupport@barnetmencap.org.uk or 020 8349 3842  or speak to your social worker. (Barnet Learning Disabilities Social Work Team - 020 8492 5400) 

THIS COULD BE A FIRST STEP TO A NEW AND EXCITING YOU!