Sheridan House

Sheridan House is a large Edwardian house that has been converted to meet the needs of 9 adults with Autism and Severe Learning Disabilities. The home is located in the small town of Sandy, Bedfordshire and has access to all the amenities within the local community.

Each resident has their own en-suite bedroom with communal access to the kitchen, living room, dining room, activity room, conservatory area and large garden.

Individual needs and choices

Residents liaise with their keyworker to discuss their likes, interests, goals and aspirations. These could include starting a college course, having a job, wanting to cook or just having the confidence to go to the shops.
Staff support residents towards achieving their goals. This may require social stories, education on social rules, understanding body language and facial expressions. Support also includes practical skills such as independent living, budgeting, food preparation, shopping and self care. We can also help access college courses and support clients to find a meaningful job.

"One user’s file inspected showed treatment management plans, behaviour guidelines, social interactions and health action plans all linked in to formulate a care plan. There was evidence that this assessment tool was constructed with relatives before implementation. The care plan summary showed the strengths and needs, the intervention required by staff and how this was to be achieved. " †

Many residents at Sheridan House have a Learning Disability and little or no verbal communication. Our Speech & Language Therapists work with the residents to identify their level of understanding; they then augment all communication to a level that they can understand. This can result in the use of pictures in care plans, daily timetables, menus etc and the use of gestures and sign a long.

Lifestyle

We support residents to use local community amenities to develop
their social awareness and engagement with the local community.
These include the leisure centre, shops, library, college, volunteer groups and places of worship.

"People in the home had opportunities for personal development, cultural awareness, appropriate activities, family involvement and a healthy diet; as a result the people using the service had a fulfilling lifestyle." †
 

Employment and Education

Residents are supported by staff to develop social, vocational, educational and leisure skills in the community and within the home.
Sheridan House has a large activity room which is used for fun activities and games as well as educational activities.

We encourage residents to develop their interests and hobbies, currently these include exploring different textures, computers, arts and crafts and simple games.  Currently some of the residents are undertaking a Basic Living Skills course at Barnfield College in Bedford.

Sheridan House Details

Personal & Healthcare support plans

Residents at Sheridan House require support for personal care. This may include assistance or prompting from staff for getting washed, dressed, eating etc.

All residents have a personal development plan which staff will work through. The plan notes the resident’s current personal care abilities and then gives goals for the resident and staff to work towards with the aim of developing the skills, so that they can be as independent as possible with their personal care.

Environment

Sheridan House is a large home with plenty of space for the residents to spread out and enjoy time by themselves or with others.
Residents are encouraged to make suggestions to the home manager to recommend any changes they would like to the home; this could include new bean bags, repainting a room, or buying new DVDs.

"The home was clean on entering and staff were friendly and welcoming. The people using the service all had individual bedrooms that were decorated to their individual tastes. All bedrooms had en-suite showers and toilets.Ӡ

Staffing

Residents are supported by a committed staff team who are trained in ASD. The home has a Registered Home Manager, Team Leader, Senior Support Workers and Support Workers. Home Managers are supported by our Training and Development Academy to ensure that all staff are trained and qualified to fulfil their role within the home.

"Relatives also spoke positively about the staff team saying they were knowledgeable about the needs of the people using the service and showed such understanding and concern about each person.*
Another relative said “staff are on the ball; they are always doing something with the people who live there”.†

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†Quotes have been taken from the latest CSCI Report