Shared Lives

Ordinary lives supported by extraordinary people

St Anne’s Shared Lives is part of St Anne’s Community Services. It was set up in 1992 as the long term Shared Lives service for people with learning disability in Leeds. The aim of the service is to assess and approve carers to offer a permanent home and support to an adult with learning disabilities. If you would like to find out more contact: Jonathan.hainsworth@st-annes.org.uk

  • Our Service
  • Client Outcomes
  • Case Studies
  • Our Quality (CQC Ratings)

    Shared Lives

    Sharing home, family and community life.

    St. Anne’s believes that people with a learning disability have the same right to live as normal a life in the community as everyone else. For many people, the chance to live in an ordinary household could be what they need and have perhaps never had.

    It is our job to recruit and train carers and to match them up with people needing this service. We then provide on-going support. Since the scheme began over 90 people have successfully lived with carers throughout the Leeds area.

    St Anne’s Shared Lives is registered as a Shared Lives service with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) under The Health and Social Care Act 2008. The scheme is assessed as being Excellent. A copy of our inspection reports are available on request.

    Please click: Information for Carers – Shared lives

    Our Service

    Client Outcomes

    Our Shared Lives scheme recruits and supports carers that can offer a home to adults with learning disabilities. This gives the client the chance to live in an ordinary household and enjoy life within their community. In some cases, this can be the first time that the clients are able to experience this.

    To support each carer and the person they are looking after, we allocate a Shared Lives worker, who regularly visits and supports. We also provide access to Shared Lives meetings, social events and undertake monitoring support and reviews to enable great carer and client life outcomes.

    All our Shared Lives carers receive pre and post approval training, including Learning Disabilities Awareness, First Aid, Safeguarding, Adults and Working in a Person
    Centred Way. We are proud to provide ongoing support and training to ensure the people cared for have access to fulfilled lives.

    To discover more about the amazing connection between our carers and clients – please see the video here.

     

    We are proud  of the achievments of both our Shared Lives carers and the people they support.

    During Shared Lives Week 2022, we captured the thoughts of Kieran and Chloe – who shared the things they enjoy.

    Client Outcomes

    Case Study

    Jennifer and Joan – a perfect match

    Joan is a 60 year old woman with a learning disability. She has lived in the community throughout her life and has been cared for by her son and daughter in law. However, her son and daughter in law now have children of their own and are struggling to provide the care that Joan needs.

    Jennifer is a divorced 47 year old mother of two children who are still living at home. She is working in a care home but has found it increasingly paperwork driven and
    impersonal. She has friends that are currently carers with St. Anne’s Shared Lives and thinks it may be a way for her to continue caring in an environment that suits her better whilst continuing part time hours with her current
    employer. Jennifer undergoes the approval process and is accepted. After careful consideration, the Scheme matched her and Joan, and after a two week period of introductions, Joan moves in.

    Joan settles in well to the family atmosphere in Jennifer’s home. Jennifer supports Joan to continue attending the services she currently enjoys within her local area. She also identifies that Joan enjoys making the most of her appearance, and supports her to visit a salon once a week to get her hair and nails done. Jennifer is able to continue her employment, which fits around Joan’s schedule.

    Throughout the placement, Joan has grown in confidence. She has felt more able to say what she thinks and her physical health has improved. Jennifer has found the experience of being a Shared Lives carer very rewarding, and has recently made modifications to her home in the hopes of being approved to care for a second person.

    To view more of our case studies, please see: Case Study: Shared Lives – Ordinary lives by extraordinary people – St Annes (st-annes.org.uk)

    Case Studies

    Our Quality

    We are proud to deliver a quality service, please see below for our CQC rating:

    Our Quality (CQC Ratings)
Our care in action

Our care in action

In 2021 one of our Shared Lives carers in Leeds, Rowenna was awarded the British Empire Medal (BEM), for services to care during the pandemic. You can see her amazing story here.

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