Healthcare & Pharmaceutical Awards 2021

GHP / Healthcare and Pharmaceutical Awards 2021 81 , Recently recognised as Supported Housing Provider of the Year, SevenWays provides support and supported accommodation in Brighton and Hove for young people and parents who need to develop practical and emotional skills before managing their tenancies. Almost two decades since its inception, SevenWays has become a pillar in the lives of many young people who would otherwise be lost. Supported Housing Provider of the Year 2021 - South East England Seven Ways provides quality support to care leavers in the transition from being looked after to living independently. It supports care leavers in building a range of skills to help them achieve their self-defined goals, placing equal importance on practical and emotional matters and seeing them as intrinsically linked. The transition into adulthood is difficult for all young people, but care leavers who have not experienced a stable past can find it particularly hard to negotiate. It can be painful to learn consequences and formulate ideas and plans, mainly if expectations have been poor in the past. As they move to independent living; all young people need to learn new skills and take on new responsibilities. However, many care leavers have not benefited from consistent adult modelling in these areas. Historically, educational outcomes for care leavers are poor, and access to education and training can be the most significant factor in enhancing life changes, self-esteem, and social inclusion. Seven Ways encourages young people to prioritise learning opportunities and form long-term goals, ensuring young people have a sense of direction, mental stimulation, self- confidence, and purpose. Moreover, adolescence brings a whole range of new challenges, physical and emotional, as most adolescents need prompting to take care of themselves. Care leavers with low self-esteem may be particularly vulnerable to self- neglecting behaviours. A lack of continuity in care can result in health matters and medical histories getting lost, with the possibility of symptoms going untreated and vital historical information remaining unknown. The Brighton-based organisation provides advice and support around self-care and maintenance of a healthy lifestyle. Priority is given to making sure that all physical, emotional, and mental health needs are identified and addressed, helping young people to develop the skills and the desire to look after themselves well, independently of others. The name ‘Seven Ways’ was chosen because it encapsulates the idea that there are seven main ways that this service can support young people, including direction, wellbeing, relationships, accommodation, skills, links and identity. Seven Ways aims to support young people in building a range of skills to help them achieve their own personal goals and successfully manage their homes, relationships, and personal progression. Homelessness affects a disproportionate number of care leavers, often because they leave home earlier than average, are ill-prepared, and lacking the support needed to manage the responsibility of keeping a home. Seven Ways is committed to ensuring that every young person leaves with the knowledge, skills and understanding to live on their own successfully. Consequently, Seven Ways provides young people with the opportunity to find their feet in a semi-protected environment. Most of the young people that Seven Way’s accommodates and supports move on and maintain secure tenancies in the community with little or no further support. Over the past five years in particular, Seven Ways has welcomed, housed, and supported numerous young asylum seekers who have successfully moved on to their secure tenancies. Having been recently recognised as the GHP Healthcare and Pharmaceutical Awards 2021 as the Supported Housing Provider of the Year 2021 - South East England, there is little doubt that we can expect to see much more of this lifechanging work by Seven Ways. Company Name: Seven Ways Ltd Contact Name: Jon Mackie Web: www.sevenwayssussex.co.uk Email: [email protected] Aug21535