Supported Lodgings

Carolina House Trust is the oldest children’s charity in Scotland. The Trust has just undertaken, under the auspices of Dundee City Council, to set up its first Adult Service - a Supported Lodgings Scheme The new scheme is only for Dundee City  young people who are leaving care. The project will build up to about 10 sets of supported lodgings in its first year, and expand according to demand. It is not an extension of foster/residential care, but a resource for vulnerable adults, registered as such with the Care Commission. The young people are young adults taking their first major step towards independence.

Accordingly, we aim to bring together a pool of lodging providers, who will have a professional approach to the task, which involves more than merely offering a room and board, but also provides practical and emotional support to the young person, for example, supporting their college placement or encouraging them in their studies, if still at school. They are expected, too, to enable the young person to see their house as a home not merely a place to board.

Assessment will take the form of a competency-based report based on a home study; Enhanced Disclosure; Local Authority check; 2 references that will be followed up by a visit; a pre-approval training event drawing on some of the keys features of the ‘Skills to Foster’ training – e.g. ability to keep the young person safe, willingness to work as part of a team etc. The applicant will then be presented to a Supported Lodgings Panel. Following approval there will be opportunities for on-going training as with any other carer/staff member of Carolina House (such as in-house courses for residential staff). There will also be a bi-monthly  Support Group Meeting to provide the carers with a sense belonging to a team and offer training and support to them.

The important thing is that Supported Lodgings should be viewed as a positive stepping stone towards independence for young people who are due to leave care, especially those in residential resources who may have had little opportunity to acquire certain skills such as cooking and budgeting. It is essential to promote the value of supported lodgings among social workers and the young people they deal with, for them to see it as a first step not a last resort.

Please don’t hesitate to phone  01382 817279 and select option 2 if you want to find out more.