Annual Review 2012 / 13
Acceptance of the individual and their autism A culture of continuous learning and personal growth for all Personalised strategies developed with and for the person with autism
Management and Governance President
The Lord Ashbourne
Chief Executive Officer
Mr A Monaghan
Vice President
Mr T J C Waterson
Honorary Fundraising President
Mr Lawrie McMenemy MBE
Senior Management Head of Finance
Mr R Gow
Head of Support Services
Mr M Walsh
Head of Human Resources
Mrs S Wassall
Consultant Head Teacher
Mr R Hubbard (until July 2012)
Head Teacher
Mrs Coral Romain (from July 2012)
Outreach Services Manager
Mrs K Templeton-Mepstead
Directors - Trustees Chairman Treasurer Secretary
Mrs P Quan Arrow Mr A Edmonds Mr G Shields Mrs B Rendell Mr J Hardie Mr J Robson Mrs C McCauley Dr H Slater
Fundraising & Project Manager Ms Sophie Davies
(resigned 16 October 2012)
Cllr I White
(co-opted 16 October 2012)
Dr C Hardie
(resigned 16 October 2012)
Finance Sub-Committee Chairman
Mr A Edmonds Mr G Shields Mrs P Quan Arrow Mr J Hardie
Hope Lodge School Governing Body Chairman Cllr I White (Chair) Mrs P Quan Arrow Mrs B Rendell Mr S Smith Dr H Slater
Training and Development Manager
Ms T Sayer-Smith
Buildings and Maintenance Manager
Mr G Grose
Operations Manager Residential Services
Miss M Callard
Operations Manager Community & Domiciliary
Mrs R Jefferson
Bankers
National Westminster Bank plc, 1 Romsey Road, Southampton
Auditors
BDO Stoy Hayward LLP, Arcadia House, Maritime Walk, Southampton
Solicitors
Trethowans, Southampton
(resigned 16 October 2012)
Dr C Hardie
(resigned 16 October 2012)
Trustee Representation on Society Sub-Committees Strategy Mr A Edmonds Mr J Robson Risk Management
Mrs C McCauley
Health & Safety
Mrs B Rendell Mr J Robson
Quality Assurance
Cllr I White
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A message from our Chief Executive 2012/13 will, I am sure, be considered a major transition point for the Society as we moved to enact the difficult decision to close Hope Lodge School and develop our model of service delivery to focus on young adults and adults with autism. The “foundations” of the new Life Skills College, which the students have chosen to name The Bridge, have been established and everyone across the Society is excited about the new educational “offer” which will have a clear focus on developing individuals’ life skills and increasing their degree of autonomy and control as they move into adulthood. The appointment of Coral Romain as Head of The Bridge will enable the building blocks of learning that have been introduced this spring to be taken, seamlessly, into the college, and help many of our current students continue their learning journey with us. This change in service model has, at times, been painful for all concerned, but is critical to the sustainability of our learning offer. We have also taken this opportunity to look at the critical building blocks that makes the Society a vital and highly respected voluntary sector provider of autism services across Hampshire. The key foundation of our provision has always been our understanding of autism and the application of this knowledge across our services. The practice model has started to evolve and, in conjunction with our Autism Alliance UK (AAUK) colleagues, we have started to adopt a more focused way of understanding the impact of an individual’s autism, using a model called Autism Partnership Validation (APV) and using evidenced-based approaches, such as TEACCH, PECS and SCERTS. We are also taking a fresh look at our understanding of all of the people we provide services to and developing, alongside the people that know them best, a more structured approach to develop their individual skills and strategies, helping them become independent and valued citizens. We have also refreshed our website and shared our promotional material on the new college to reflect this evolving practice model. We plan to hold workshops for those connected to the Society so that a common understanding of our service model and aspirations can be gained. The last year has also seen many of the voluntary autism organisations such as ours, change their name and remove the word “Society” to purely reflect the focus on autism and the area from which they provide services. Similarly, the Society has also explored a change to the Society’s name from Hampshire Autistic Society to Autism Hampshire and we will continue to explore this change during this transitional time, raising it at our Annual General Meeting (AGM) in October 2013. It feels like the world around the Society is going through major change and the continued economic pressure on the public sector has made it difficult to jointly develop new
services, despite the universal understanding of a clear need. However, the last year has seen some major achievements with the publishing of both Southampton City Council and Hampshire County Council’s autism strategies. The development of the first autism-specific strategies for the county reflects significant time and commitment from joint Health, Social Care and Education departments, as well as the autism community. During 2013/14 I am anticipating the development of comparable strategies for both Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight to help streamline the themes and desired outcomes of all the unitary authorities. The progress achieved jointly across Hampshire will position the county to be a forerunner of autism service provision across the UK. Another critical development has been the Society’s emergence as the lead provider of autism training to other organisations. I strongly believe, despite our transitional changes, that the Society is universally considered the leading voluntary sector autism provider in the region and a lead partner in raising public sector awareness of the needs of autism communities, developing “value for money autism specialist services”. The Society has also been developing its Adult Service model and this has seen the emergence of a more activity focused delivery of our Day Service at Anglesey Lodge and a new Supported Living service in Southampton. We now have a total of four Supported Living services with a further one planned for Winchester in 2013. I believe that the Society has “turned the corner” in regard to the difficult decision to close Hope Lodge School and has positively embarked, in conjunction with the autism community and commissioners, on the development of a service and practice model that will see the Society well placed to enhance our reputation as autism specialists in 2013/14. There is still much to be done and the first six months of 2013 have been pivotal to the Society moving forward. As always I am grateful for the commitment of our autism specialist staff, management and administration staff, the Board of Trustees and the Executive Team, for keeping the focus on our service users and how we can improve the services we provide to them to make a
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lasting difference to their lives. I would like to thank every member of staff for working so positively in difficult transitional times, helping to develop the new service model and positioning the Society so positively for the year ahead. I would also like to commend the autism community and partners in the public sector for their commitment to the cause as without this unified voice, autism could easily have slipped from the local public sector agenda. Collectively we have retained and developed a new, improved approach to the understanding and development of autism services. Mr Andrew Monaghan Chief Executive Officer
Our mission Hampshire Autistic Society was founded in the mid 1960s and is the only organisation in Hampshire offering direct services to over 100 individuals on the autistic spectrum each year as well as providing outreach support to over 250 families affected by autism. The Society’s services are often first accessed by people in crisis and its impressive portfolio now includes a unique Life Skills College, residential care homes, an Adult Day Service, Domiciliary Care, Supported Living, University Study Support and an Outreach Department responding to 18,000 calls per year and offering signposting and life-changing advice on matters such as education and employment. Other services include an Information Resource, a seminar programme featuring national and international speakers and awardwinning community based projects. Our mission is to enable people with autism in Hampshire to develop and achieve their full potential by providing and developing person centered services, expert advice, education and support, promoting awareness and understanding of autism and signposting interested parties to information and services that may be of help. The Society’s vision is to be the leading autism-focused organisation in the county of Hampshire.
Outreach Services
The Autism App launch at Hampshire Constabulary’s Support and Training Headquarters near Southampton
FUN FOR FAMILIES AT THE QE11 CENTRE
Outreach projects
could be rolled out on both a national and international basis.
There are an estimated 18,000 people with autism in Hampshire alone and we know from direct experience that many fail to receive the help they need in the community to live valued and fulfilled lives. So for many across the county, the Society’s Outreach Services can quite literally be a ‘lifeline’, offering life changing advice and support across all areas of their lives. I am writing at the end of what has been a particularly busy and exciting year for the Outreach Services team. I am sure that none of us were prepared for some of the additional projects we took on but we are not known for shrinking from a challenge! The calls and emails from those needing our support across Hampshire continued to rise and we peaked at just over 15,000 in 2012/13. Despite this unprecedented demand on the team, we have still successfully supported hundreds of individuals, families and professionals through their individual journeys with autism throughout the year.
Autism Alert Programme We continued to look at new ways to develop and market the Autism Alert Programme working with Hampshire Constabulary and the Criminal Justice System to ensure the continuity and longevity of autism awareness initiatives. While working on another project a young man with autism said that he would like his Autism Alert Card as an App on his smartphone. We investigated how this might happen and in April 2013, in partnership with companies Crimson Tide and OneCom, we launched the Autism App for smartphones. The App has various functions just like the Autism Alert Card but has additional clever functions such as anxiety prompts. We turned the whole project around in 6 months and hope to develop the tool as an initiative that
Autism Arts It is hugely challenging to find community activities and entertainment that are suitable or meaningful for those with autism, so in partnership with The Mayflower Theatre, Forest Forge and London production company Qodos, we developed an exciting new theatre project for young people and children on the autism spectrum. This involved the production of a relaxed viewing of a mainstream production of an iconic pantomime, Jack and the Beanstalk, starring Julian Clary, Nigel Havers, Lee Meade and Jeffrey Holland. The whole event and the atmosphere on the day was magical and all the actors worked tirelessly with the staff and crew to make the performance a huge success, earning us local TV and press coverage which helps to raise the profile of autism. All of us in the team felt very honoured to have been part of the project and reaffirmed the satisfaction we get in our roles supporting the autism community across Hampshire. To witness so many people enjoying a wonderful Christmas tradition was a real privilege and we now have plans for next years pantomime as well as other shows that we can adapt and work with in a similar way.
Support during diagnosis Receiving a diagnosis of autism can often be overwhelming for both individuals and their families, so the Outreach Team continued its support work at both the Royal Hampshire County Hospital and Wordsworth House in Southampton to help people with autism cope with their diagnosis and signpost them to other services that can help.
Presentations Increasing awareness of the needs of the autism community is key to ensuring that individuals receive the support they may
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We supported the first ever ‘relaxed performance’ of a pantomime in Hampshire
need in the education system and in times of emergency or extreme stress. Towards this aim, the team has once again been busy delivering autism awareness presentations throughout the county to numerous professionals including fire service personnel, police officers, school teachers and further education lecturers to name but a few.
Other news In 2012/13 the team was keen to forge new partnerships with schools, leisure providers and community support groups. Outreach Officer Jackie Harvey, in particular, worked with a number of local schools to help set up their own support groups for families who have children with autism. This proved to be a huge success and more schools are asking for support to do the same this year. We also worked at setting up summer activities such as drama groups and music groups which we ran in the summer at The Mayflower Theatre. All activities were undertaken on the stage itself and were hugely successful so we are hoping to offer further activities this summer too. I continued to work with the Criminal Justice System (CJS) and we have worked with the different areas of the CJS over the past year raising autism awareness for all community frontline workers such as police and probation officers. We plan to continue this work with new partners to help ensure better outcomes for those with autism who come into contact with the CJS. Finally, we are proud to report that as a result of a bid to tender for the provision of the Southampton City Autism Support Service, we were awarded the contract and are now busy actually delivering this key service to help support those affected by autism in the city. Karen Templeton-Mepstead, Outreach Services Manager
Services for Adults
Sean, one of our service users, tries archery for the first time
The Society actively promotes healthy living across all our services
DAVID ENJOYING CHRISTMAS CELEBRATIONS
In what is my 10th year working for the Society, I can report that the past year has been difficult and challenging for learners, families, staff, the Board and Management Team and for Commissioners, following a difficult decision to reshape our children’s and younger adult services. We have worked hard to move forward positively and to plan and develop a service that is not only needed, but will be in demand for the people we support, their families and Commissioners. It is only right that in this year of transition, we acknowledge the efforts and commitment of our staff to students in children’s and younger adult services during uncertain times. We believe we have taken the opportunity to develop an integrated service model giving the right learning and support and preparation for individuals into their adult life. September, when the College opens, will be an exciting time for both learners and the organisation.
services. I am delighted to report that all services have received positive feedback with all requirements being met, and exceeded, in each service. For copies of the reports please follow the links on our website at www.has.org.uk
difficult economic times, as well as maintain a quality service for those supported in our registered homes.
We have continued to invest in our autism practice development through the Autism Partnership Validation (APV) framework developed by the Autism Alliance UK (AAUK) members. We have undertaken a series of staff team training workshops about APV and SCERTS (Social Communication Emotional Regulation & Transactional Support) which we are using to help us improve our autism practice. Primarily developed in children’s services, the SCERTS model is a researchbased educational approach and multidisciplinary framework that directly addresses the core challenges faced by people with autism and related disabilities. SCERTS focuses on building competence in: Social Communication, Emotional Regulation and Transactional Support which are considered the highest priorities for those with autism. For more information visit http://www.scerts.com/ All our residential services have recently been inspected either by OFSTED for Residential Education or by CQC (Quality Care Commission) in our Residential Homes along with our Domiciliary and Supported Living
Over the past year we have also developed a new Supported Living Service in Southampton which opened in December 2012. To facilitate this we forged a partnership with Future Housing Solutions, which means we are now working with a total of four external housing providers. While it has taken considerable time and we have had to overcome many challenges, 2013 should be the year in which the Supported Living Service planned for Anglesey Lodge finally starts to become tangible. Despite the spending review, planning challenges and loss of a housing provider through funding changes, The Society and Hampshire County Council remain committed to the scheme and we are currently working on a funding and implementation plan. We have had some recent senior management changes within the Support Services Department with Kerrie Clark moving on to work for the CQC after working as our Senior Manager Hampshire East for just over 5 years. We have taken the opportunity to revise our management structure with Rachel Jefferson continuing with responsibility as Operational Manager for our Community and Domiciliary Support and Day Service, while Michelle Callard moved from Senior Manager Residential Education to Operational Manager Residential Services. Mike Walsh, Head of Support Services
Buildings and Maintenance It has been another challenging year maintaining and improve the standards of our facilities and accommodation during these
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I would like to extend my grateful thanks to all the local companies for allowing some of their hardworking staff to take time off to participate in employee volunteering schemes including gardening, decorating, providing new furniture and general maintenance around many of our services. Unashamedly, I will repeat that our success as an organisation is dependent on the hard work, understanding and commitment of our staff and volunteers at all levels and all areas. George Grose, Building & Maintenance Manager
Domiliciary Support Our Domiciliary Assessment and Support Service is the Society’s response to its increasing understanding of the diverse needs of people with autism. Our innovative range of services includes a Supported Living service, community support for adults with autism and a University Study Support initiative. All strands of this provision promote health and wellbeing, social inclusion and the development of independent life skills in social, domestic, work and educational settings. 2012/13 has been another very busy year filled with many social and other opportunities for the adults we support.
Healthy Living Many of the people we support regularly attended the gym and activity classes throughout the year to maintain a healthy lifestyle and keep in shape. This is an ongoing focus across all of our services for adults and really makes a difference helping and encouraging all those we support in eating healthily, menu planning for day to day living and taking regular exercise.
Services for Adults
University Study Support helps around 100 young people with autism each year achieve their qualifications
Our Service for Adults provides regular opportunities to attend community events and visit local attractions
ANTHONY & LORRAINE HAVE FUN ON A BOAT TRIP
Moving into employment
Celebrations
We maintained our emphasis this year on work opportunities and placements while a number of people we supported had the opportunity to develop work-based skills and knowledge. Three people are now also progressing into voluntary work having been supported by staff. This underpins the next stage of their plan to work towards part time paid employment and is a truly amazing and inspirational achievement.
There have been an abundance of parties and celebrations taking place throughout the year that have included birthdays, anniversaries, Halloween, Easter and Christmas. All these occasions were not only fun but excellent ways to encourage greater interaction between service users and forge closer bonds and understanding between individuals and staff.
In February this year we had an annual, unannounced inspection by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) who examined how we evidence the support we provide and tested the quality and safety of our provision by speaking with some of the people we support and their families, and also by observing our staff as they delivered support. We were thrilled to be found fully compliant in the five areas of inspection and a full report can be located for reading on our website at www.has.org.uk
University study support This year has been as busy, if not busier, than previous years as numbers of students accessing the service has continued to grow and we are currently supporting over 80 young people on the autism spectrum in their studies at Portsmouth University. We welcomed some new faces to the staff team and were delighted that Alex Walker agreed to ‘act up’ as the interim Assistant Coordinator to cover maternity leave. We had excellent news on students that we had supported for the past three years becoming graduates in 2012.
Leisure Leisure time is extremely important for adults with autism as it can help with relaxation and reduce anxiety and stress levels. During the last year there was a renewed focus on social and leisure time to those we support who accessed the cinema, beach and public attractions and have enjoyed the challenges and interaction with others that this has involved. Individual interests have also thrived and many individuals had opportunities to experience outings and events that they may never have been able to experience before such as Billy Smarts Circus, the England v West Indies cricket match at the Ageas bowl and horse riding.
Supported Living While there is no official definition of Supported Living, this type of service can be adapted for both those who can live with almost no support, and for people who need it 24 hours a day. Supported Living therefore offers people more choice – about where to live, who to live with, and who provides the support. The Society’s service users who have chosen Supported Living have highlighted the privacy it offers and the greater freedom to live independently. One poignantly told us: “I don’t need anything else; independence is the best thing about life.” Last year we launched a new Supported Living service in Southampton which supports three young adults, Chelsea, Rory and James. Since moving into the property in December the tenants have been busy getting to know each other and accessing a variety of community activities while also learning new life skills for running their house. It has been a very exciting time for them particularly as they celebrated their first Christmas together! This brings the Society’s total number of Supported Living schemes to four. Tenants living in two of our other Supported Living houses received the fantastic news from our Fundraising Team that their houses had been ‘adopted’ by Sainsbury’s in Bitterne. Over the course of the year Sainsbury’s staff supported the young tenants in buying new items for their home and invited them to the store for an afternoon tea party where they met customers and staff.
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It has been a year filled with achievement and exciting new challenges: one of the tenants, who has regularly been attending dance classes, was overjoyed to receive a certificate for competing in a dance competition while others successfully gained local work opportunities. Success stories like these will form part of our support and guidance over the coming year so that people with autism continue to acquire skills and strategies for greater independence and fulfilment. Rachel Jefferson, Operations Manager Community & Domiciliary
Adult Residential Support
HALLOWEEN CELEBRATIONS
DAY TRIP TO A THEME PARK
2012/13 saw a number of management changes, with Kerrie Clark, Senior Manager of Adult Services, leaving the organisation after 13 years to begin a new career with the Care Quality Commission. (CQC) With the current changes in Adult Services, this presented the opportunity for myself and Charlie Kane to join Adult Services as the new Operations Manager and Charlie as the Registered Manager of Ford Road.
Ford Road
Over the last 12 months we have welcomed the recent inspections from the Care Quality Commission, (CQC) which came to assess all the Society’s registered homes for adults with autism: Ford Road, The Holt, The Bungalow, 102A and 102B Brockhurst Road. Each service received confirmation that it was fully compliant, with additional positive feedback included in each report. These can be reviewed and downloaded from the Society’s website.
All residents this year have been supported to focus on increasing their physical activity and encouraged to lead healthier lifestyles along with preparing, cooking and experimenting with healthier meal options. There has also been consistent encouragement and support to increase interaction with others and community participation. This has been a great success so far and the service users are starting to communicate much more confidently about what sort of activities they want to do and places they would like to visit.
Throughout the year we also continued to look at ways of improving our autism practice and understanding and have rolled out APV (Autism Partnership Validation) and SCERTS (Social Communication Emotional Regulation, and Transactional support) workshops across all services, to support and improve our understanding of autism. We are looking forward to taking this improvement forward over the next 12 months. Michelle Callard, Operations Manager Residential Services
It has been a year of change for the individuals who live at Ford Road with regards to some staff moving on and new staff joining the team including both support workers and a new Registered Manager. However, with our consistent person-centred approach, all residents have maintained and developed key skills during this unsettling period.
Although still using symbols and Makaton to help individuals communicate, we started to move into more technological forms of communication and introduced some for the first time to programmes on IPads and Tablets. Residents have also enjoyed increased participation in a wider range of activities. The regular favourites are Wednesday Club, bowling and the cinema, while new activities have included ice skating and increased excursions to the beach and public parks.
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There has been a renewed focus on new activities such as boating for all our service users
All residents now enjoy one day in the week remaining at Ford Road as an alternative to attending our Day Service. Following discussions with individuals and the support team it was decided to restructure this time and aim to make it more meaningful for everyone. Grocery shopping is now done online which frees up more time for people to enjoy individual activities of their choosing. These have included getting haircuts and colours and shopping for clothes and other personal items. Finally, this year Ford Road had its first CQC inspection which covered the following areas: respecting and involving people who use the services; care and welfare of people who use the services; cleanliness and infection control and supporting workers and complaints. The inspection involved thorough scrutiny of each resident’s support plans, staff interviews and discussions with parents. The inspections later revealed, “examples of comprehensive person centred support plans, which had been developed with each individual.... and it was clear from discussions with members of staff and observation that although each person had a plan of activities this was flexible and could be altered to meet the wishes of the individual.” Charlie Kane, Registered Manager – Ford Road
Adult Residential Support
PAUL FROM 102A AT AMAZON WORLD
SUMMER ENTERTAINMENT AT THE HOLT
Martin at 102b using PECS (Picture Exchange Communication System), a communication development tool
102A Brockhurst Road
102B Brockhurst Road
The past year has again been a busy time at 102A with lots of opportunities for residents to gain new experiences and skills. The home is currently embracing Autism Partnership Validation and SCERTS, which is enhancing the support the home provides for individuals and promotes a better understanding of individual choice and independence.
All residents were supported to explore numerous activities during the past year including day trips to the cinema to see films such as Ice Age, Madagascar, the Croods and Wreck-it-Ralph and a number of bowling sessions. Some chose to visit local attractions such as the Explosion Museum and Blue Reef Aquarium in Portsmouth, while there were also numerous day trips to the Isle of Wight and theme parks such as Thorpe Park.
positive feedback on the quality of the care and support offered to all.
Employees from Zurich Insurance in Fareham kindly offered their services to 102A and came for the day to undertake a “DIY SOS” makeover for the house and garden. Seeds were planted in the bedding areas to add colour and vibrancy and we are now the proud owners of two gnomes chosen by one of our residents to stand guard over the new flowers! A new, wall mounted TV/DVD player was also installed in the dining room with an armchair chosen by a resident to provide additional comfort for TV viewing and relaxation. All residents were given support to plan their summer holidays with destinations to Dorset, Bournemouth, The Isle of Wight, and France. All had a great time and are now eagerly planning their next summer holiday. There have been many social outings with two of our residents being supported to a pantomime in Salisbury followed by a meal at a burger bar which was thoroughly enjoyed. A trip to see the film showing of “Les Miserables” was also popular, as well as other films such as “The Croods and “The Hobbit”. Having one day during the week when residents can remain at home proved successful with everyone choosing to do something. There were shopping trips and meals in Gunwharf Quays in Portsmouth and in the springtime, numerous walks along the beach and nature reserves with a drop into local cafés for tea and cake or ice cream.
Some of the most enjoyable activities were the 2012 summer holidays. All service users were supported during meetings, ‘circles of support’ and person-centred planning meetings to look at ideas for holidays and nearby places to visit. Two residents enjoyed a Butlins Holiday where they greatly enjoyed the amusements and evening shows, while others visited surrounding attractions. One resident, who had not been able to go on holiday for some time, stayed at the Centre Parcs holiday resort in Longleat and really enjoyed the swimming activities. Another chose to go to his favoured holiday destination to the Parkdean Holiday Park at Warmwell. There has also been some redevelopment at 102B. With many thanks to an employee team from Zurich Insurance in Fareham, the rather scruffy old staff room was transformed into a second lounge for the residents, something they have been requesting for some time. It was fantastic to be able to do this at last and provide everyone with additional space they can use and relax in. The 102B Deputy Manager is in the process of undertaking a Communication Co-ordinators course, which will be used in conjunction with the Autism Partnership Validation and SCERTS to not only enhance the service and support the home provides for individuals, but to promote greater independence for individuals. Other good news is that 102B had a CQC Inspection where all areas were compliant with
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Ron Clark, Registered Manager
The Holt It has been a busy and active year for all residents of The Holt with horseriding sessions and excursions to the Romsey Rapids, Marwell Zoo, West Wittering beach, Pagham and Bournemouth, while two residents also went to the Paralympics to watch the weight lifting which was greatly enjoyed. Throughout September, holidays were enjoyed by all the service users at Dorset, Minehead and Devon while October brought a trip to a 1960’s themed disco night in Southampton and a Halloween Party at our Day Service. At Christmas, one of our residents chose to buy a real tree for the home and all enjoyed a visit to the Christmas pantomime at Ferneham Hall in Fareham. One of our residents also went to see Joseph and his Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat at The Mayflower Theatre in Southampton. She had not been to the theatre since she was a child and it proved to be a great success and more trips are now being planned. Throughout the year, Autism Partnership Validation (APV) workshops were attended by all staff with the five key core principles being introduced as the basis for all work planned at The Holt. CQC carried out a routine inspection at The Holt and scrutinised residents’ care records, observed how the people were being cared for and talked to people who used the service. I am delighted to report that The Holt was fully compliant and met all required standards. Staff have worked so well all year and I would like to congratulate them for their commitment and hard work. Paula Thane, Acting Registered Manager – The Holt
Adult Residential Support
ANNUAL DAY SERVICE SUMMER FETE
CLARE ENJOYS SENSORY PLAY AT THE BUNGALOW
Daily living skills are key to greater independence for the adults in our care
The Bungalow
an unannounced inspection from CQC which covered five key areas of service delivery. I am pleased to report that we were fully compliant in all areas with additional positive feedback.
The Wood Workshop now provides a more business focussed approach to how it operates and this has enabled us to support people in development of skills in communication, numeracy and Health and Safety awareness at work. Our service user News Team also resumed its work this year and has just published its first newsletter.
This year I was welcomed to The Bungalow as its Registered Manager where we also welcomed five new support workers. Marge Bateman also joined us when she transferred from Whitworth Crescent in Southampton. The new staff, along with the existing staff, have been a huge asset throughout 2012/13 and we are all looking forward to developing further skills and strategies for all who reside here. Over the past year we have also worked with outside agencies to ensure that the best approaches are being used to support adults with autism. There has been a great amount of sensory input for one resident who now has access to a growing box of tools to support her with her sensory needs. The positive impact upon her has been uplifting to witness and we are looking at further ways to develop this type of support. Another resident has been nominated to be the overall “party planner” and over the year successfully organised the Halloween, Christmas and Easter parties which he greatly enjoyed. Organising these events required him to source all the necessary food and drink, produce and circulate invitations, shop for decorations and also prepare the venue on the day of each party. This has taken a lot of hard work, planning and preparation and bore fantastic results of which he was understandably extremely proud. Another of our residents developed strategies to move from one activity to another without anxiety and with consistent staff support he also started to incorporate the use of a sand timer to support this visually. Another was supported to create an activity file that he used to express activities he would like to do. This led to trips to the theatre, Marwell Zoo, a weekly social club and a evening out to see the group “Shakatak” in concert which he really enjoyed. In October 2012 we had
Looking to the future we are now preparing for this year’s goal planning and setting and further development of skills and strategies for people who live at The Bungalow in line with APV and SCERTS. There are lots of plans to further develop the knowledge around this and we are all looking forward to being a part of it. Kristie Small, Registered Manager - The Bungalow
Day Service The last year saw a number of positive changes to our Day Service that operates at Anglesey Lodge in Gosport, including a new partnership with our Domiciliary Services, giving an opportunity for the Service to begin operating in a new and more personalised way. Our Day Service underwent general development and improvements to its environment and people who access the service were involved in shaping a new Common Room for relaxation and a Health and Wellbeing Room where they experienced ‘pamper sessions’ and learnt skills around their personal health and wellbeing. We were delighted to install a new Smart Board as a learning aid in the education room which has also been redecorated and refurbished to enhance the learning experience and create a more autism friendly environment. One area we focused on over the year was the scheduling of activities, both group or individual, so that all service users had access to a wider programme for skill development and to ensure greater individual choice. We have now embedded these new schedules into the structure of the Day Service and are beginning to see positive changes in group dynamics and effectiveness of sessions.
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People accessing the Day Service are always game for a celebration or party and this year was no exception as a full calendar of events took place including Burns night, St George’s Day, St David’s Day, St Patrick’s Day, Halloween and Christmas. We also supported people to access the Para Olympics 2012. Our Annual Summer Fete was held in September and this year had a Disney theme. The money raised from the day was donated to Day Services and was used towards the much needed refurbishment of the common room. Maria Brewer, Day Service Manager
Hope Lodge School and our new Life Skills College, The Bridge
TOM GETS SUPPORT USING AN IPAD
Qualified staff trained in autism are key to the success of the new life skills college
The name of our New Life Skills College was chosen by our current learners
Current learners and their achievements
The Society continued its excellent standard of service throughout the final year of the school and, despite the news of closure leading to the loss of some staff, key positions were replaced. Our Therapy Team was strengthened with the appointment of Dr Helen Rouse, Clinical Psychologist, who worked at the school through an agreement with Solent NHS. I was appointed as interim Headteacher, coming from a background of 25 years of working across the sector, bringing energy and vision to this difficult year and planning for the future.
areas of Independent Living, Career Planning (next steps), Social and Communication Skills development, Personal and Emotional skills development and applied functional skills where appropriate.
As always, our learners were busy throughout the year, come rain, shine or snow! Drama sessions took place at our college campus and were also accessed by pre 16 young people in their transitional year to familiarise them with a college environment. Zumba classes were added to the post 16 PE timetable to supplement the swimming and walking which was already taking place. In addition to the curriculum topics for the learners, community access remained an important aspect of our young people’s learning for independent living skills - one in particular had success in visiting the local church café on a regular basis. Summer allowed much outdoor fun including a whole day of Jubilee celebrations making decorations, food for the street party, ‘have a go’ sports sessions and a visit from the Hampshire Fire and Rescue education team who brought a full-size fire engine full of water for the learners to practice their fire fighting skills. Four learners from Post 16 achieved OCR Entry 2 in Reading and Writing, one Entry Level Certificate in Adult Literacy, one in Entry Level Certificate in Adult Numeracy and another a grade B GCSE in Maths through accessing a sector college. 2012/13 was also a mixed year for our school. It began with the sad announcement that, due to many external circumstances impacting on the delivery of specialist education, Hope Lodge would be closing in July 2013. The news was devastating to students, parents and staff but with the whole of the Society pulling together, we were able to implement robust transition plans and appropriate support was established for both those who moved on and those who have remained within our service.
The decision to close the school was inevitably a hard decision to make but intrinsically has not meant the removal of a service, more the development of a new educational offer that can grow and thrive within a changeable political and economic climate. By focusing our developments on a specialist college service, which can offer residential as well as day learning placements, we are responding to current demands and needs within our region for young people and their families, while remaining aware of and proactive in our response to pressures from local and national government. By working closely with our funding bodies, we can establish positive relationships and achieve transparency regarding the provision of high quality, appropriate and specialist services which also represent good value for money.
The Bridge – our new Life Skills College The planning for the new service , our Life Skills College ‘The Bridge’, has built upon what has been learned from the current post 16-19 provision and is based on the campus in Bassett Avenue, Southampton. It is designed to meet the needs of young people, predominantly between 16-25 years and learning programmes are built around core
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Both the residential and day programme will form a ‘total learning environment’, where individualised specialist programmes of study are negotiated with learners, building on the interests, skills and aspirations of each young person. Goals will be developed for each learner who will receive an effective ‘wrap around’ learning support service from our specialist team, making full use of relevant and appropriate learning environments both on and off site. The learning programme establishes at its core the principles identified within Autism Partnership Validation (APV) and uses the Social, Communication, Emotional, Regulation, Transactional, Support, (SCERTS) model as a tool to construct an autismspecific learning programme that establishes key outcomes for each young person attending the college. Trans-disciplinary working will underpin holistic assessment, planning and review while progress and achievement (accredited or non-accredited) is tracked with each young person throughout their ‘learner journey’. It is imperative that we can measure the impact of their learning on each young person’s capacity to become increasingly independent as ‘valued citizens’ in their communities.
An integrated service Specialist Support Team (SST) The uniqueness of the new College is its offer of ‘wrap around’ support and specialist intervention across the waking day, ensuring that all learners are supported through each challenge they may encounter across a wide range of contexts.
Hope Lodge School and our new Life Skills College, The Bridge
Supporting college learners to acquire new skills will help them move into paid employment
Current learner, Patrick using an iPad for the first time
LEARNERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO TAKE PART IN DIVERSE ACTIVITIES
This seamless and comprehensive approach is integral to effective learning and the ability to measure positive impact on each of the young people that come through the doors.
arrangements are being negotiated with specific reference to funding for current and prospective learners.
Promoting the offer
The Bridge will benefit from an experienced staff team from our residential services as well as two Life Skills Practitioners who will lead on the curriculum delivery. Alongside our practitioners and support staff, we have a highly qualified Specialist Team comprised of a Speech and Language Therapist, Occupational Therapist, Behaviour Specialist, and Clinical Psychologist who assess the strengths and needs of each learner alongside the educational and support staff, strengthening the impact of the relevant programme for each individual. Implicit within any programme that espouses learning for life, particularly for those with autism, is that all achievement needs to be acknowledged and recognised as a contributory factor in positive changes to the life of each learner.
Links with local special schools are being reinforced and an Open Day on the 19th June 2013 helped promote the new Service in a more formal way. We are also looking into developing opportunities for Social Enterprise, internships, apprenticeships and other vocational experiences across the Society and into adult services. Direct collaborative work is underway with Highbury College in Portsmouth with the intention of advising the College on how best to support its students with autism. This can then provide additional opportunities for young people studying at The Bridge, and in time, will facilitate the development of a satellite service for young people with autism in Portsmouth who currently have little access to specialist post-16 learning opportunities.
Building relationships and collaborative partnerships Collaborative partnerships are being developed to offer a wider range of work experience placements and access to other sector colleges while considerable work has been put into restoring and developing relationships with local authorities across the region. Information is being shared on a regular basis, through excellent family liaison and transition meetings while individual
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I am also delighted to report that we have successfully developed a distinctive, modern brand for the Life Skills College which we also feel has a ‘good fit’ with the organisational re-branding of the Society. The new College Prospectus is now ready and has been disseminated to Commissioners, parents and other external stakeholders with an interest in the College’s development. To order a copy please contact the Admissions Team on 023 80 766162 or at thebridge@has.org.uk Coral Romain, Head of College
Fundraising
Fundraising plays a pivotal role in generating additional income for the Society for its charitable activities and last year the team raised £208,000 to help sustain its Outreach Services and other projects. Income is secured through a variety of channels including local companies, trusts and foundations, events in the community and donations from individuals, many of whom have a link to autism through family connection or friends. Last year, the focus began to shift to developing income from UK based trusts and foundations and building on the success of the previous year’s fundraising events which help to generate both income and awareness of the cause. Last year also saw significant changes in the team, with Sally Hillyear leaving the Society for pastures new and my appointment in 2013 to develop and implement a refreshed fundraising strategy designed to facilitate income growth.
SKYDIVING IS A POPULAR WAY TO RAISE MONEY FOR US
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Fundraising
LAWRIE MCMENEMY CELEBRITY GOLF DAY
ANDREW & MARTIN PROUDLY DISPLAY THEIR GREAT SOUTH RUN MEDALS
PLATE SPINNING AT OUR ANNUAL LAKESIDE FAMILY EVENT
Trusts and Foundations
such as decorating, gardening and general maintenance that made such a difference to those who accessed our services. We are keen to maintain relationships with these local companies and forge partnerships with new ones.
Members
Although many trusts and foundations in the UK have been reporting a downturn in their investments and are more reluctant to fund new projects, this still remains one of the most cost effective areas of fundraising for the Society and delivered some excellent results in 2012/13. Grants to help sustain Outreach Services and other projects came to nearly £75,000, an excellent result which confirms that this income stream is a key growth area for the Society and is being actively developed. I would like to extend my thanks to all the trusts and foundations which supported the Society in 2012/13 including The Three Guineas Trust, Garfield Weston Foundation and the Selwood Charitable Trust.
Events and Challenges The past year has seen some very successful fundraising events for the Society. Our two Celebrity Golf Days with Lawrie McMenemy and Shaun Udal raised a combined total of £19,000 and the challenge events hit an all time peak, with the Virgin London Marathon bringing in just under £20,000. The Society’s donorbase has continued to grow while our corporate supporters have hosted several fundraising events on our behalf throughout the year, with the Echo and Property Association Ball raising in excess of £8,000.
Community Projects The Society’s Head Office is ideally positioned on a business park and so we are in close proximity to a number of thriving companies which are always willing to donate staff time and money to our cause, often through the annual Give and Gain Day. Last year was no exception and many rallied round to offer us free labour and materials to update and refresh our services for adults and residential homes.
Corporate Partnerships Last year we were delighted to receive support from an increased number of companies across Hampshire ranging from local branches of national chains such as Sainsbury’s to small, independent businesses that wanted to give something back to the community. In return, the Society offered its corporate partners increased brand exposure via its website and social media platforms and potentially lucrative networking opportunities at high profile events such as our annual celebrity golf days. We would also like to reiterate our thanks to our ongoing partners which include East Horton Golf Centre, POSH Restaurant, Botleigh Grange Hotel, Grosvenor Casino, Southampton and the Rhinefield House Hotel.
Ambassadors and Patrons We would like to thank all our Ambassadors and Patrons who helped raise awareness and money by hosting high profile events such as the annual Lawrie McMenemy and Shaun Udal Golf Days, donating their time and providing free advice and guidance year after year. Their support was once again hugely important in helping us increase awareness of autism in Hampshire as well as raising significant funds which can be immediately used wherever the need is greatest. So we would like to take this opportunity to thank Lawrie McMenemy CBE, Shaun Udal, Matt Le Tissier, Paul Jones, Shelley Jory-Leigh and BBC South Today news reader Laura Trant.
We would like to thank Business in the Community, Zurich Insurance and KPMG for all their support and hard work on projects
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The Society is a membership organisation which is open to all. Membership runs from April to March and is offered on both an annual and five year subscription basis offering a number of benefits and privileges including eligibility for election to The Board of Directors, a regular Society and Annual Review, Attendance at the AGM and other Society events, access to Society’s professionals and discounts on Society events. Last year our membership level remained steady at around 180 individuals and we are delighted to report that many came along to our Annual General Meeting (AGM) and participated in a number of events. Membership enquiries should be directed to Hannah Godfrey in the first instance on 01489 880 881 Ext 204 or at hannah.godfrey@has.org.uk.
Volunteers The lifeblood of many charities is its loyal volunteer base and during the year we worked hard to recruit additional volunteers to help support a number of activities and events in the busy fundraising calendar. Volunteers helped in the office with a range of administration work, supported staff at fundraising events in the community and bravely participated in high octane challenge events such as The Great South Run, London Marathon, parachute jumps and abseils from some of the tallest buildings on the south coast! We would like to offer our heartfelt thanks to longstanding volunteers Gill Watson, Margaret Rimmer, Bettan Brown, Margaret Roskilly and Diana Peagram and all the other volunteers who so generously gave up their time to help in whatever way they could. Sophie Davies, Fundraising & Project Manager
Human Resources
OMRON EMPLOYEE VOLUNTEERING TEAM
WE ARE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR NEW COMPANY EMPLOYEES TO VOLUNTEER FOR US, E.G ON GIVE AND GAIN DAY
ALL FRONTLINE STAFF RECEIVED BASIC MAKATON TRAINING
The last year has been without doubt, a challenging time for the Society, its management and staff teams.
The HR Team has a robust induction and training programme for all our Life Skills College staff and management personnel. This includes a continuous professional development plan to support all staff in maintaining their skills and knowledge within our specialist environment.
The HR Team has continued to work hard to successfully ensure that all staff across the organisation receive a robust day to day operational HR service, whilst ensuring ongoing individual staff support to those affected by the necessary changes.
The Society completed an intense period of change in order to successfully manage the economic financial pressures, continue to meet the changing needs of stakeholders and navigate the Society positively forward through this difficult period. This time of change included significant re-modelling of our Southampton services, our staffing structures and service delivery approach. I am delighted that the Human Resources (HR) Team has successfully accomplished these management objectives and will continue to support the ongoing development of the new Life Skills College, The Bridge and recruit additional quality staff.
Whilst change is unsettling for all concerned, the Society has been extremely impressed with its staff and their understanding, support and appreciation of the Society’s need to adjust to the changing demands of all its stakeholders. The Society highly commends its staff for their approach during this difficult time, their professionalism and positive engagement with Human Resources, as well as their unwavering commitment to, and support of, our learners and service users.
As with any period of change, it is essential that we review our training needs to ensure the approach continues to fit our service delivery and re-modelled services. The Training & Development Team has been instrumental in undertaking this review and has worked in partnership with the Specialist Therapy and The Bridge management teams to develop ongoing training plans and continuous professional development for frontline staff. In addition to this, I am pleased to report that the training team has taken 210 staff through in-house autism training and Refresher Programmes Levels 1 and 2, while a further 420 other training places were filled as part of the Society’s ongoing commitment to staff development. The Training & Development Team has continued to build upon its external training delivery success and its fast-growing reputation as a specialist training resource for autism-focused professionals. Over the last year the Society has also provided an impressive 345 external Autism Awareness training sessions to individuals from organisations such as the Police, NHS, Local Authorities, Youth Projects, Children’s Services, and Learning Disabilities/Residential Care and Domiciliary Services. This is an excellent achievement, upon which we will continue to build. Not only is training of immense value to support the Society’s ongoing commitment to staff development, but also significantly underpins greater awareness, knowledge and understanding of autism within the wider community. Sally Wassall, Head of Human Resources
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Income and Expenditure Summary Income and expenditure 8000
7000
6000
£000s
5000
4000
3000
2000
Income
1000
Expenditure 0
2008 / 09
2009 / 10
2011 / 12
2010 / 11
2012 / 13
Based on pre-audit figures for 2012/13
Total Income 2012/13 £5,515,000
Total Expenditure 2012/2013 £6,071,000 Cost of Charitable Activities £5,758,000
Fee Income £5,256,000
Costs of generating other fundraising income £40,000
Fundraising events income £156,000
Fundraising event costs £108,000
Other fundraising Income £103,000
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Additional provision for school closure £110,000
Governance costs £55,000
Contact Details Head Office 1634 Parkway, Solent Business Park, Whiteley Fareham, Hampshire, PO15 7AH Tel: 01489 880881 Fax: 01489 880890 Email: info@has.org.uk
Outreach Services 22 Midanbury Lane, Bitterne Park Southampton, Hampshire, SO18 4HP Tel: 023 80 633951 Email: outreach@has.org.uk
Service for Adults 1634 Parkway, Solent Business Park, Whiteley Fareham, Hampshire, PO15 7AH Tel: 01489 880881 / 023 92 524243 Email: adultservices@has.org.uk
The Bridge 3 Bassett Avenue, Southampton, Hampshire SO16 7DP Tel: 023 80 766162 Email: thebridge@has.org.uk
www.has.org.uk
Acceptance of the individual and their autism A culture of continuous learning and personal growth for all Personalised strategies developed with and for the person with autism
Charity Reg No: 288141