Welcome to the Resettlement page.

Local Connection Supported Housing

There are 14 units of accommodation in the local resident supported housing project. Eight of them are in Bryant House, which is where most people start as the highest level of support is provided from here. Six are in Wolverton House, there are weekly house meetings, and individual 1-1’s, both the premises are close to Boscombe town centre which has many shops and meetings, and the beach is only about 10 minutes away on foot.

In both Bryant House and Wolverton House each client has their own room, and this room is a clients' private accommodation. Clients have keys to their own room as well as the front door. Clients can have their own TV, DVD and music equipment in their own rooms, however it is their responsibility to ensure the room is locked when they are out. There are communal facilities available for everyone's use; these include a lounge with cable TV, a dining room, kitchen, Laundry (detergents supplied), garden and two bathrooms in each property. In Bryant House there is also the Re-settlement office. Clients are responsible for their own food and meal times, although in both houses we do provide breakfast.

What to expect

On admission to re-settlement you will initially have to complete the Licence Agreement, this is a standard document, which is similar to a tenancy agreement, except that if a client should return to using they can be asked to leave in the interest of the other clients. Your tenancy is dependant on remaining abstinent. This does also ensure that as a client you will be living in an abstinent environment. Once this is done, any relevant benefit claims will also be completed with the assistance of staff.

You will then be given your keys and the general running of the house will be explained. There are therapeutic duties in the communal areas, if everyone does one job; the house remains clean and pleasant for everyone who lives there. You will be introduced to which ever residents are in at the time and left to settle in. There will be an appointment made to see your support worker in the first couple of days, to help you to organise your time and to sort out any initial difficulties, like the location of services or whom to contact about practical matters and together set some goals for you to work towards, such as joining a local gym or opening a bank account. Each week, in the houses there is a house meeting; this is where problems can be brought up, from simple practical things such as dirty mugs, to concerns about a fellow resident, to requests for work to be done on the house to changing who does which TD to asking for extra support in a difficult time.

As the time in Re-settlement progresses, we expect you to become more comfortable with organising your own time, money, eating and leisure activities, to give you a firm foundation to move back into the community at large.

Aims

The aim of the Re-settlement project is a simple one, it is to provide safe, secure, practical abstinence based supported accommodation for people who are in early recovery from addiction. We see people as individuals and can at times continue to support a service user whom has lapsed.

Objectives

The objective of this scheme is to increase the numbers of people remaining abstinent from drugs and alcohol for long periods of time and assisting them in learning to deal with the practical responsibilities of successful independent living in the community.

Service

Re-settlement is funded by the governments Supporting People initiative, which is designed to support people in the community. This service has been broken down into two areas, the accommodation element and the practical support element.

The first element is to provide safe and suitable accommodation in one of the charities properties.

The second element is concerned with the provision of staff to provide practical support in areas such as life skills, education for employment, property security, property care, financial manageability, structure, referral to any relevant agencies: for example: counselling, finding employment, CAB, and voluntary work. Additionally on a Wednesday afternoon an aftercare group session is held at Bryant House which has proven to be very popular. This 12 week rolling program group, covers subjects such as relapse prevention, healthy relationships etc.

We anticipate that each client will require this support for in the region of six months, at this point, the client is able to apply for the rent deposit scheme from Bournemouth Borough Council which enables the client to borrow the deposit to move on to their own accommodation at a very affordable rate. Clients leaving at this stage can also apply for floating support for up to two years.

Client feedback

I have been with StreetScene before and have always felt supported and safe during my stay within the resettlement program. Other agencies whom I have reached out for help in the past have seemed ill equipped to deal with my addiction and mental health issues. StreetScene have always treated me with acceptance and respect. The Staff always treat people according to their individual needs. I am truly grateful for this….

Charlieeeeeeeeeeeeeee xxxxx

My name is Jason, I first started out in the YMCA back in June 2011. Here I felt isolated, I felt alone, I couldn’t relate to anyone in there.

I needed to change my situation, because I feared relapse would be inevitable if I remained isolated and disconnected. I took the opportunity of taking action whilst accessing structured day treatment at Sharp Bournemouth and Poole. Here I spoke to a counsellor, she advised me to look into accessing supported housing. I took this advice on board and went to the Bournemouth Assessment Team, where I spoke to my care manager. She enquired about getting me into supported housing with StreetScene at Bryant House. Within two day I had received an assessment with a lovely lady; Helen was very kind and made me feel welcome. Later that same day, I learnt that I had been accepted, this was on the Friday. I moved in on the following Monday. Again I was made to feel welcome by both the staff and residents. I felt more secure and happier at Bryant House I now felt I had people with whom I could relate too and I didn’t feel alone anymore.

I have been clean now for five months, during this time I have moved into Wolverton Road which is also a part of StreetScene resettlement. I can honestly say since getting clean I have come a lone way in my recovery. I believe that I would have found it very hard to have maintained my situation without the care and support of my Peers and the staff in supported housing.

Jason , 2011

Unity House Supported Housing

There are 22 units of accommodation in the out of area supported housing project. These are a mixture of one bedroom, studio flats and single rooms.

What to expect

You will then be given your keys and the general running of the flat will be explained. Clients are responsible for their own food and meal times. An appointment to see your support worker will be given to you in the first couple of days. Your support worker will help you to organise your time and to sort out any initial difficulties, like the location of services or whom to contact about practical matters and together set some goals for you to work towards, such as joining a local gym or opening a bank account. Each week, there is a house meeting; this is where problems can be brought up, from simple practical things such as maintenance, to concerns about a fellow resident to asking for extra support for yourself.

Aims

The aim of the Re-settlement project is a simple one, it is to provide safe, secure, practical abstinence based supported accommodation for people who have completed residential treatment and are now building a new life in recovery. We see people as individuals and can at times continue to support a service user who has lapsed.

Objectives

Service

Unity House Re-settlement is part funded by the clients care manager or private funds; our service is designed to support people back in the community. This service has been broken down into two areas, the accommodation element and the practical support element.

The first element is to provide safe and suitable accommodation in one of the charities properties.

The second element is concerned with the provision of staff to provide practical support in areas such as life skills, education for employment, property security, property care, financial manageability, structure, referral to any relevant agencies: for example: counselling, finding employment, CAB, and voluntary work. Additionally on a Wednesday afternoon an aftercare group session is held at Bryant House. This 12 week rolling program covers subjects such as relapse prevention, healthy relationships etc. Reintegration is another service available which can help clients to get additional support post graduation and helps them to integrate back into the community.

We anticipate that each client will require this support for in the region of six months. Clients leaving at this stage can apply for floating support for up to two years. In a clients words….

I came to StreetScene residential treatment in Jan 2011, after spending time in H.M P Blundeston, I completed Cornerways after 6 Months I was offered a place at the new project Unity House supported housing and also independent living at the same time, at this point I was very afraid and scared about being in the community as it had been a long time since I was out there. I knew I was not ready to have my own place and pay bills and pressure and worries without any support.

I was soon put as ease by the team at Bryant and the 24hrs support’s I have one to one with my support worker, I use this time to air my concerns and worries, I know I can pop in at any time and if someone is free I know they will give me time to talk if that is what I need and I get the support or they point me in the right direction. I also use the support of my sponsor, and the peers who are also in the same situation as me and we use each other as a support network. With this I have managed to build up a support network.

The care and support I have received has been second to none and as long as I keep on asking for advice and help I know it is always there for me.

Alan, Unity House Resident, 2011