INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

We report from the Blackpool Progress Housing Association Conference

Hazel and Dawn have great stories to share with us

Sports news from Philip and Tommy at the ice hockey

Save ££ with childcare vouchers

And we remember this year’s superb Celebration

Day at Radcliffe Civic Suite…

June 2014

Manchester – Blackpool Bike Ride 2014 Training sessions have been continuing in preparation for the 60 mile Manchester- Blackpool bike ride on Sunday 13th July in aid of The Christie. At the last training session on 11th May, Matthew, Graham, Peter, Pete, Andy and Sammy rode around 24 miles and are getting used to riding together as a team. There is one more training ride taking place on Sunday 15th June at 12pm at Marle House and then it will be the real thing! We be setting off from Old Trafford at 9am on Sunday 13th July 2014 so if you would like to come and cheer us on, we would welcome your support!

Sponsorship forms are available at Marle House or you can sponsor Sammy-Jo or Rachel on Future Directions Dynamos just giving page: www.justgiving.com/teams /futuredirectionsdynamos

GOOD NEWS

Following her recent diagnosis

of diabetes, Hazel has worked

with staff and the local

District Nurse Team really

well.

Hazel has been successfully

training with staff to check

her own blood sugar levels.

She has committed herself to

work towards a healthier

lifestyle. Hazel now buys only

healthy food choices.

And once she picks up her new

mobility car in a few weeks,

Hazel plans to keep fitter by

going for strolls in parks and

having active days out.

Andrew and Peter doing the 3 Peak Challenge

This is a picture of Andrew and Peter

just before they reached the summit of

PEN-Y-GHENT. It is one of the Three

Peaks in the Yorkshire Dales.

Over the next few months they will be

training by doing a peak each week and

when they feel fit enough they will be

attempting to complete the Yorkshire

three peaks in one day. Good luck!

My Weight Loss Story

My name is Dawn Eaves and I started to lose

weight after Christmas. I was 14st 2lb when I

started and I am now 12st 5lb.

I sat down one day and I thought: “Dawn, you

need to sort this out love, you need to outlive

your Mum.”

The person who looks after my health was

eating healthily and uses my scales with me to

weigh herself. She lets me see her weight.

Sometimes I laugh at her when she puts a 1lb

or 2 on because I am always losing at least 1lb a

week. I actually thought it would never be

possible with all the medication I am on, but

because I am motivated and with the right help,

I have surprised myself and feel more alive and

energetic.

I am still losing weight and not giving up!

Ice Hockey Recently Philip and Tommy went to the Ice Hockey with John and Dave. This was a new

experience and although we like football we had never been to anything like this before.

Tommy was all excited and couldn't wait to go. Once there we were shown to our seats

and which team we should be following — Manchester in red. We had a brew to warm up

as it was very cold but then the game started and we forgot the cold as it was exciting

and fast. We got a bit concerned that our team was going to lose as we went down but

then we came back and won. It was a great night out and we really enjoyed the game. We

can’t wait for the next match.

Burnley League

Christmas Party

It might be a bit ago, but we

want to share this news from

Burnley (because they are

already planning their next

event!).

After a lot of preparation the day had

finally arrived. It was the Burnley

League Christmas Party. Everyone

from the Gables were looking forward

to getting their glad rags on and

having fun.

New Friends

A very warm welcome to colleagues who’ve

started work with us in the last few months.

We hope you already feel part of the family.

March Induction: Front row (l-r): Julie Allen,

Warrington, Rachel Keighley - Warrington,

Chinelo Umeh, Student Amanda Carter. Back

row: Ngoni Mandizvdza (Bank); Peter Moran -

Warrington.

April Induction: (l-r) Isabel Sibanda (Bank),

Stephen Jones - Manchester, Jean Moore -

Manchester, Geoffrey Pugh (Bank), Rejoice

Dekeya (Bank), Sam Jennings (Bank).

Arriving early we put party poppers and balloons on tables and before long, friends and

family started to arrive. Once the music started the dance floor soon filled with people

letting their hair down. There was lots of laughter and smiling faces.

Jimmy Towers, the singer, went round the room encouraging everyone to join in.

Afterwards we tucked in and enjoyed potato pie and mushy peas. This was followed by

the highlight of the afternoon. Father Christmas arrived with his helper to give

presents out to everyone. All in all it was a fantastic party.

As ever, it is a busy time for everyone at Future Directions and I really appreciate your work and support. A special hello to our service users, families and staff at Coppull. This is a house in Lancashire where Christine Wilkinson and her team are now supporting two young ladies with autism.

In this issue, we are asking if you know anyone who you would like to nominate for the Outstanding Contribution Award – have a think and let us know who you think is extra special and deserves being made a bit of a fuss of.

Recent winners of the award include Mike Maden of Burnley Road. Mike is extremely person-centred and supports the men to be valued members of the community with graphics, DVDs and memory aids. We were contacted by someone at B&Q who told us how well a gentleman was supported by Mike whilst in store. Nicola Bates of Floatshall Road has also received an Outstanding Contribution Award. Nikki supported a lady to set up and run her own social club!

There’s been some excellent news which has enabled us to show off our successes to the world. We’ve reprinted here Pete Begley’s article about autism which appeared in Rochdale Online. Recently we had a good write up from Think Local Act Personal. Their website has a case study about how we’ve used feedback from families and staff to improve questionnaires and ensure service users feel strongly supported every day. Kim Barrett has led this. Great work!

Best wishes. Paula Braynion, Managing Director.

Paula says… Can I start my blog for this newsletter with a personal thank you to everyone who wished me well for my 40th birthday. It meant a lot to me and I loved the presents.

On 9th March 2014, three individuals from three Stockport houses attended

the Progress Housing Association Conference at the Hilton Hotel in Blackpool.

This is a yearly conference organised by Progress for all of their tenants.

The conference gives tenants chance to see what goes on behind the scenes

of Progress Housing Association, meet housing officers and other staff

members, ask questions about the services Progress provide, meet with other

tenants and discuss any issues or difficulties that they may be facing within

their homes and communities.

The day featured speakers from the housing association, workshops and an

award ceremony.

All Progress Housing Association tenants/Service users were treated to a

lovely lunch and unlimited refreshments throughout the day.

David, Valerie and Linda had a great time and were looked after very well by

the Progress Housing community involvement team.

Progress Housing Association Service Users Conference

Celebration

Day 2014

Celebration Day 2014

You can see from the pictures that we had a great Celebration Day! We came together

at Radcliffe Civic Suite to share the great things we do, talk about what is important in

our homes and our lives, and to have some fun.

Managing Director Paula Braynion opened the day. She said how proud she was of what

we have achieved and how far Future Directions has come since we were first set up as a

community interest company in 2012. Members of the Board were there – as well as lots

of staff and a really great turnout from our houses.

Paula reminded everyone about our mission. She said: “We are a community interest

company that works with individuals, families, commissioners and local communities to

design and deliver personalised services; enabling individual choice and control to achieve

fulfilled lives.”

There was plenty to do: music and singing, tombola and guess the number of sweets in

the jar, as well as lovely cakes to eat. Some service users took part in musical

therapy. Some created great artwork. Some had fun with balloon games.

Service users and staff from many of the houses had created posters and collages all

about what happens at our locations. For today, people had created designs about what

they enjoy doing, what makes them feel good and how they like to decorate their

rooms. They were on display all around the room and there were presentations about

them.

We also heard all about the SPICE Group. They are all about Supporting People Into

Community Employment (SPICE). Members of the team gave a presentation about their

recent trip to the I.C.E (Inclusive Community Experience) conference at Ribby Hall near

Blackpool. They told us today about their ‘Come Dine With Me’ session, where they didn’t

know who would be coming for dinner that evening. They cooked an amazing lasagne for

their guests and the evening was a great success with plenty of laughter and chatter.

When they were away, they had dancing and Delwyn got on stage and sang ‘Daisy Daisy’

to the enthusiastic crowd. During the daytime the group had got involved in different

workshops, from arts and crafts, dancing and a pantomime workshop and today they told

us all about it. They finished their presentations by singing ‘Ice Ice Baby’ for us!

As well as all the fun, there was chance for everyone to have their say about what’s

important to them in their homes and how they are supported.

The organisers did a great job and service users had a great time. That’s a brilliant day!

Party in the Park

Future Directions CIC set up a stall at Party in the Park 2014 for health and social care providers. Pete and Paul manned the tombola and gave out leaflets, it was a great opportunity to get our name out there! It’s a FREE community event in Leigh, Pennington Flash, for all the family, but in particular people with disabilities, mental health issues, or problems associated with old age. As well as a great day out, it was a chance to get information and advice from a range of health, social care and housing providers. There was also entertainment, drama performances, face painting, scarecrow making, arts and crafts, free NHS health checks, benefits advice, therapeutic sessions, funfair, cakes, jewellery and much, much more! Money raised from the tombola will be split between Mencap Learning Disability Week and FDCIC’s Service User’s Christmas Party.

OUR MEETING 2014

Come and meet new people, see old friends

and have some fun.

Contact Kim Barrett at Marle House for more information:

01254 821720

Marle House

Chadderton Business Park, Chadderton

OL9 9XA

Rochdale

Heywood Baptist Church, Heywood,

OL10 1LE

Warrington

11 - 13 Wilson Pattern Street, Warrington

WA1 1PS

31st July (Thursday)

16th July (Wednesday)

19th July (Saturday)

22nd September (Monday)

16th September (Tuesday)

9th September (Tuesday)

15th November (Saturday)

26th November (Wednesday)

11th November (Tuesday)

13.30 – 15.30 14.00 – 16.00 13.30 – 15.30

Kim Barrett says:

At ‘Our Meeting’ in May lots of people came along to talk

about ‘How I choose my support staff’. People talked about

what they want staff to do and what makes a good staff.

It was good to see new people coming along to the meeting.

The next meetings are in July, see you all then.

07791 505 930 Please Remember - 'Safeguarding Is Everyone’s Responsibility.'

01245 821 406 (VOIP 3046) Manc/Stockport/Warringon/Halton 01254 821 408 (VOIP 3408) East Lancs 01254 821 410 (VOIP 3410) Rochdale 01254 821 409 (VOIP 3409) Senior Managers

07966 872 322

Recruitment training in Warrington

Katie, David, Dianne and Dean (pictured), plus Lorraine have all taken part in the 4 week recruitment course so that they can recruit and interview their own staff. Both Steven and Maz have delivered the training, sharing stories about interviewing good and bad staff and how they treat everyone fairly at the interview. Everyone has enjoyed the training and can’t wait to put their new skills into practice. Well done everyone for all your hard work.

Working at Marle House…

If you are working at Marle House and you have staff coming to meet with you, where possible can you please use a meeting room rather than having discussions at desks. If you speak to Chris on reception, she can organise this for you. Please book a computer with Chris before you get to Marle House when possible to make sure one is available for you. If you need a computer but haven’t booked one, please speak to Chris on reception before using one as it may be booked for someone else. You are more than welcome to have a Coffee or Tea when working in the office but please could you remember to put 20p in the tub in the kitchen for each drink. Thank you!

Online and in the News Recently, we appeared on the Rochdale

Online news website. Pete Begley wrote an informative article which is reproduced for you here…

April was Autism Awareness Month and a North West social care provider is one of the first in the country to pioneer the use of a sensory profile to

help understand the individual needs of clients with autism.

Future Directions CIC is a social care provider for people with learning disabilities and complex

needs and its Operational Network Manager, Peter Begley, was instrumental in the decision to use the profile.

“Dr Olga Bogdashina MA PhD is Co-founder, Programme Leader and Lecturer at the International Autism Institute and has received

critical acclaim for her work on the hypo-and-hyper-sensitive sensory perceptual experiences of autistic people,” he said. “Part of her work is the

development of a sensory profile and we have been given permission by her publisher to use part of the profile and help pioneer its use in the

UK to further develop person centred support.”

In autistic people, senses can be either over developed to be hyper-sensitive or under-

developed to be hypo-sensitive, both can impact on how a person will experience and cope with different environments. Profiling sensory

sensitivity, allows carers and family members to capture a person’s characteristics and provide further information to develop a person-centred

approach to support the autistic condition. Future Directions support 25 autistic clients and each one has had a sensory profile completed.

“The profile is carried out by people who already know the person,” said Peter. “Essentially it looks at both their historical and current behaviours and

helps to define and explain `why` somebody behaves the way they do.

“For example, client M likes his own personal

space and will often spend time in his room alone. Sometimes M will cover his face and head with his duvet and weighted blankets. Prior to completing

his sensory profile, we thought well that’s just the way he is.

However, the profile has now helped us realise

that M is hypo-sensitive to visual and auditory noise. When a certain thing gets too much for him, he attempts to shut out the `whole world`,

covering his head with his weighted blanket and duvet. It is his way of reassuring himself and helps him feel safe.”

The sensory profile covers seven key areas including sight, sound, touch, smell and balance and once

completed, allows Future Directions’ Personal Assistants to update a Positive Behaviour Support Plan and so ensure the person-centred approach to an

autistic condition.

Family input is also invaluable to developing the sensory profile and Future Directions worked in

partnership with them to provide a coherent approach to understanding M`s personality and what support he requires to enhance his life skills.

M’s mum said: “It’s hard to believe that something as

simple as this profile has helped all of us manage some of M’s more unpredictable behaviour. I believe it has helped him feel safer in the world and hopefully taken

away those elements that heightened his anxieties. Making a few simple changes to his day to day

environment has worked wonders.”

Future Directions has incorporated the sensory profile into its staff training on supporting individual’s with autism and it has become an essential part of its

philosophy to support people with autism and meet the requirements of the Autism Act.

You can also read this piece online at:

http://www.rochdaleonline.co.uk/news-features/2/news-headlines/86155/north-west-care-provider-pioneers-care-for-people-with-autism

These ‘I’ statements have been developed to show what people say if the ISF is working well.

WHAT: “I can use my hours / budget flexibly and can choose what I am supported with”. WHERE: “I am supported where it makes sense for me, at home and out and about”. WHO: “I choose who I want to support me, my support worker knows me and I know them”. WHEN: “I get support on the days and at the times that are right for me”. CO-PRODUCTION: “I am fully involved in decisions about my own support and how the wider service develops”.

Contact Kim Barrett at Marle House for more information.

What is an Individual Service Fund (I.S.F)? This is a fundamental principle of the personalisation agenda. It helps provide support designed around the needs and preferences of the individual. It is one of the ways an individual can receive a personal budget. It is a three way agreement between the person, the provider and their local authority. The money is held by the provider on the individual’s behalf. The person decides how to spend the money. The provider is directly accountable to the person and agrees to use the budget in accordance with their needs and wishes which is captured within a person’s support plan. The provider commits to only spend the money on the individual’s service; this includes direct support hours, management and additional services necessary to provide the support. The money is not put into a general pooled budget.

The benefits of an Individual Service Fund. The person will know how much money they have to spend on their support. The provider will tell the person how many hours they are entitled to. It creates opportunities for people to have greater choice and control over how they receive their support. People will be able to choose who is supporting them, how they are supported and when they receive support. People can choose to use their budget flexibly to meet their needs and wishes. It is an opportunity to develop natural support within the community.

Contact Kim Barrett for more information: 01254 821 466

For us, there is no better praise than being recommended by you as a great company to work for. And so, Future Directions are introducing a scheme to say thank you for recommending us as a good employer. If one of your friends or family are appointed, you will receive a £25 high street voucher once they complete 3 months’ employment with us. All they will have to do is, at the interview panel, when asked where they heard about the job, tell us that you recommended us. If they are appointed to our bank, you would be eligible to receive your £25 voucher once they have completed 400 hours working in any of our houses.

‘Recruit a Friend’ and receive a £25 High Street Voucher

On-Call:

If there is an incident or accident out of office hours then staff must contact their Local On-Call Manager to inform them.

If police have been contacted and are going to attend, the Local On-Call Manager should establish the reason for the police attending and whether staff require a physical response from the Local On-Call Manager. The Local On-Call Manager must inform the Senior On-Call Manager in regards to the police attending and if the Local On-Call Manager is unsure whether they should physically respond, the Senior On-Call will advise accordingly.

If the Local On-Call number is not answered and goes to voicemail, please leave a message with your name and contact number so that the Local On-Call manager can call you back. Your number will show up on their phone as an unknown number.

Please refer to the On-Call policy for further information.

Key Holder Definition: The Key holder is a staff member designated as responsible for the safe keeping of the medicines and cash keys. This person will be identified within the 24 Hour Report Book. In most cases this would be the staff on the sleepover shift. Where there is more than one Personal Assistant on duty and one of them is a designated key holder, this person remains the lead person and is responsible for contacting a manager/on-call person should there be any problems, queries or concerns related to a Service User(s), the running of the home or delivery of service.

Social Networking Sites (such as Facebook, Twitter etc.): All staff are reminded of the rules around confidentiality, bullying and /or bringing Future Directions CIC’s name into disrepute and that this extends to the use of Social Media, such as Facebook and Twitter. We do monitor social networking sites and Future Directions CIC will take action, up to and including dismissal, where it can be demonstrated that staff have clearly breached confidentially rules, there is evidence of bullying towards other staff or bringing Future Directions CIC’s name into disrepute. See Use of Internet Policy and Staff Handbook for guidance.

Bank Timesheets: There are a number of issues that are occurring regularly with bank timesheets – please take the time to read the following and ensure that you adhere to them: - Bank sheets must be at Marle House no later than the 1st of the month

- It is the employee’s responsibility to ensure that they are received at Marle House by the 1st and NOT the

responsibility of Team Managers

- Timesheets must be fully completed and legible – common issues are:

Not being signed Not being authorised Hours not filled in Assignment number missing (if you are

unsure of your assignment number, ask)

- Any forms received that are incomplete will be returned to you. If forms are not received by the first of

the month, fully completed, legible and signed off, it may result in a delay in payment until the following

month.

Head Injury Advice: Are you aware of what to do if someone receives a head injury? If not, please refer to

the information recently e-mailed to you or sent out to all paper-based houses.

Future Directions Staff Survey

Late last year, we ran our first staff survey for the Company.

The returns were useful and we really appreciate those people who took the time to complete it. However, the number received was not as good as we had hoped. Part of the reason for this is likely to have been how we communicated and also that we solely used an online system, and so, have decided to re-run the survey over the summer.

The survey will be paper based and anonymous – we hope that you will take the opportunity to give us your views about what we do well and what we could improve on.

The survey will go out to houses at the beginning of July and will close in mid-August, with results published shortly afterwards. Thanks, Matt Ireland

Pro

ced

ure

re

min

de

rs f

or

Staf

f

Facebook Competition To raise awareness of FDCIC we ran a facebook competition with a prize of £25 high street vouchers. We asked people to like our facebook page to be in with a chance of winning. The post reached almost 1000 people and we gained extra valuable ‘likes’. The winner was Ronnie Ashton from Rochdale. Well done Ronnie!

Family Consultation Report by Rachel Wilkes

Our latest Family Consultation Meeting took place on Saturday 8th March and was attended by the family members of six service users from across the service. Thank you for coming!

The following is a summary of items that were discussed:

E-mailing copies of reviews to Family Members. We are thinking about how to go about sending identifiable service user information over the internet.

The possibility of an internet portal to allow family members access to information about their relative’s was asked about. We are at the early stages of piloting a system called ‘People Planner.’ We agreed to check if it was possible for families to have access.

The question of who is in charge in the house when the Team Manager is not there. It was explained that we have a Keyholder system in place. This means that one member of staff is responsible for the house and medication keys and is designated in charge. If the Team Manager is not available, families can ask to speak to the Keyholder.

Also Team Managers are contactable by mobile phone during office hours or the on-call manager can be contacted out of hours. If any family members don’t have the mobile number for the appropriate Team Manager, please contact Marle House during office hours on 01254 821 720 and we can give you their number.

Creating a Family Consultation Group to meet once a quarter to give the board an idea of a family’s point of view and to share relevant information and what is happening within the organisation. At the next meeting, we will discuss and agree what information families would like to see.

Having a presentation or discussion topic as part of the agenda at family meetings. Possible suggestions made included current social legislation, personalisation, shared ownership of a home etc. The presentation for the June session will be a presentation around Dementia Friends.

A summary of future Family Meetings will be included in this newsletter which we will send out every few months. We would prefer to send these by e-mail if possible. If you use e-mail, please could you send a message to Rachel Wilkes on rachel.wilkes@futuredirectionscic.co.uk and we will add this to our contact list for future use.

The dates for the next Family Consultation Meetings are: Sat 21st June 2014 11:00 – 13:30 Sat 27th September 2014 11:00 – 13:30 Sat 6th December 2014 11:00 – 13:30 Sat 21st March 2015 11:00 – 13:30

These meetings will be held at Marle House and a light lunch will be provided.

If you would like to attend, please contact Rachel Wilkes on 01254 821 732 or e-mail rachel.wilkes@futuredirectionscic.co.uk.

Celebration Day 2014: stories, prizes, singing, friendship, fun

Very tasty! Fundraising and food at The Great Sport Relief Bake Off

At present, your salary is subject to tax and National Insurance deductions. Under the childcare voucher scheme you are able to take a portion of your salary as childcare vouchers which are not subject to tax and National Insurance deductions. This allows you to save money on the cost of your childcare through your tax and National Insurance savings and is referred to as a ‘salary sacrifice scheme’. A Childcare Voucher Scheme is offered as a benefit via your employer. This can help you make savings of up to £933 for low rate tax payers, or £625 for high rate tax payers. It’s easy to do, flexible and convenient. For more information, including an information pack and frequently asked questions, please visit the Fideliti website www.fideliti.co.uk, or you can contact them on 0800 288 8727 or enquiries@fideliti.co.uk. You can register online for Childcare Vouchers at www.fideliti.co.uk/employeeregister. The employer code that you will need to register is FUT1402.

Outstanding contribution award All staff are eligible to be nominated for this award. They must demonstrate initiative, exemplary individual achievement and contribution in their work, showing outstanding

performance in their job role. The prize is an extra day of annual leave! You will receive an email with the nomination form attached (paper based houses will receive a paper copy) and

these are the criteria for you to consider:

How has the employee improved the life of the person / people they support? Give specific examples.

How has the employee gone the extra mile within their workplace, which is above and beyond the normal job role? You may need to refer to job description and specification.

How has the employee supported and encouraged the individual to have more choice and control in their life?

How has the employee supported the individual to be valued members of their community?

How has the employee promoted teamwork and inspired excellence in others?

The prize will be a ‘Holiday Voucher’ entitling you to one day’s annual leave. You will also get a letter from Director of Operations Paul Lord, a certificate, photo and recognition in this

newsletter!

Forms will be accepted at any time and must be submitted to Kim Barrett (Personalisation Lead). The nomination form will be taken to the governance meeting every three months; January, April, July,

October.

We all know how expensive the cost of child care can be. Future Directions have teamed up with a company called Fideliti to help by offering staff the opportunity to purchase Childcare Vouchers.

*WIN

* O

NE

DA

Y O

F

AN

NU

AL

LEA

VE!

What is assisted technology? Assisted technology can be a device, system or piece of equipment that increases and / or maintains a person’s independence.

How can assisted technology be used:

To stay safe at home: Heat and smoke alarms can be personalised with a

voice that the person will recognise – telling them to ‘get out – there is a fire’.

Flood sensors fixed to skirting boards in the bathroom and kitchen. The system will turn off the water and raise the alarm.

Sensors that turns the light on when someone gets up during the night.

Door locks that recognise fingerprints.

Staying safe in the community: GPS watch – the individual can press a button for

assistance. The watch will give the carer exact location of the person.

Aids to help recognise money

Easy to use mobile phones

To promote independence and choice: Medication dispensers, touch lamps, electric wheelchairs, aids to help with dressing, communication aids such as iPad apps.

What are the benefits of assisted technology?

It promotes a person’s independence at

home and when out and about.

Improve a person’s quality of life.

People have choice and control in their lives.

Help manage potential risk in the home and

in the local community.

Maintain a person’s dignity.

Support a person to stay longer in their own

home.

Reduce stress for the person and their

families – if something goes wrong the

system will raise an alarm for assistance.

Can reduce the potential of a person

needing additional support or going into

crisis.

This can be a standalone piece of equipment

or linked to a telecare system.

There are many ethical questions when using assisted technology. The Mental Capacity Act (2005) provides a legal framework to support decision making in the person’s best interest.

Touch lamp

Epilepsy monitor

Pill dispenser

Talking smoke alarm

WARRINGTON: NOW and THEN

Lorraine Gage has sent us these two images of

our ‘new’ office base in Warrington. They were

taken about a hundred years apart!

This is Wilson Patten Street, named after a

Victorian politician from the town who

supported reforms to the tough standards of the

textile industry at that time.

Our office is just a couple of minutes’ walk from

the shops and if you carried on walking up the

street from this scene, you would reach Bank

Quay Station.

As you can see, nothing has changed that

much!” says Lorraine.

Warrington Office

Burnley Road, Bacup: Following a service review by Lancashire County Council (LCC) they have decided to reduce both the service user’s hours and hourly rate, which would have meant that FD would have either have had to serve notice or change staff terms and conditions which the company did not wish to do either. A further meeting was held with LCC and they have now agreed the following:

That the service user’s hours would still be reduced to the new assessed hours and That the hourly rate would continue to be paid at the current rate for a further 12 months.

FD have developed a 12 month plan to meet this challenging financial target. The affected staff and families have been told of the change and service users are being supported to understand the changes.

South Lancashire: We have secured new business supporting two 16 year old ladies to live within their own home. The service became operational March 2014 and the Team Manager is Christine Wilkinson.

Rochdale: We have been successful on getting on the Mental Health Framework. Pen pictures (mini tenders) have begun to come through. At present we have not expressed interest as we are developing relationships with housing associations with the intention of being able to set up a partnership to provide housing and support.

Trafford: We are currently in discussion with Trafford Commissioners to develop a 4 bed registered nursing home. Three individuals have been identified from inpatient services to move in to this property. The service will provide a step down from secure services to move on to supported living or independent living in the future. It will have nursing and additional professional support which will be bought in (OT, psychiatry and psychology). the project plan has been developed and meetings are booked. We are working with a housing provider to identify a property in the Trafford area. Oldham: We have been successful in getting on the Oldham Framework, which means that we are able to bid for business.

Lancashire: Still waiting for an outcome for a tender for Home Care services for individuals with physical disabilities. Lancashire are reducing the number of providers from 120 to 20 larger providers. However feedback was very good and we are now submitting a tender in for Lancashire Care for step down services. Lancashire Autism Service: Managers attended an interview back in February 2014, however we were unsuccessful on this occasion.

Tameside: we submitted a tender for 4 young people in transition to provide supported living services in March 2014. The decision has been delayed and we are still awaiting the outcome. We are currently completing a tender in Tameside for young adult services – 5 flats new Charter Housing.

Salford: We submitted an application to be on the Salford Framework on 28th February 2014. Still waiting for the outcome. Supported accommodation & day opportunities.

Rochdale: We are applying to be on the framework to provide services to people with physical disabilities and acquired brain injury – supported living and or outreach services. This was submitted in May and we are waiting to hear if we were successful.

Wakefield: We are in the process in putting in a tender for 15 supported living services in this area.

Business Updates

Making It Real

Future Directions CIC Marle House, Oldham Broadway Business Park, Broadgate

Chadderton, Oldham, OL9 9XA

Telephone: 01254 821 720 Email: info@futuredirectionscic.co.uk

www.futuredirectionscic.co.uk

If y

ou

wo

uld

like

to

be

invo

lved

in m

akin

g th

ese

acti

on

s b

eco

me

po

ssib

le,

con

tact

Kim

Bar

rett

at

Mar

le H

ou

se o

n 0

12

54

82

1 7

20

or

emai

l

kim

.bar

rett

@fu

ture

dir

ecti

on

scic

.co

.uk

Staff Lottery

Please note that all staff working for us are able to join the lottery scheme.

Your contribution is taken from salaries each month by ELFS (our partners at East Lancashire Financial Services). Please contact Charlotte Ellwood on 01254 732227 or alternatively please email her at charlotte.ellwood@elht.nhs.uk.

You have to be in it to win it!

Best wishes to Linda

Very best wishes to Linda Barker on her retirement. Linda has been a valued member of the team for 30 years. You will be missed!

A group of us met up with Linda at a restaurant in Clitheroe to celebrate her retirement. Linda says, “Thank you to everyone who came to the meal and for your lovely gifts and good wishes. It’s been a pleasure!”

Enjoy your retirement Linda.

Reminder - Bank Timesheets

As clearly stated on the bank timesheets, they must be fully completed, signed and at Marle House by the first of each month.

It is YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to ensure that they are received for processing by this date and NOT that of your Team Manager.

If forms are not received by the first of the month, it may result in a delay in payment until the next month.