Meet Julie and Sean who have moved from a 24-hour a day staffed apartment project into their own supported living tenancy in Accrington - putting themselves in control of the whole process.
 
Sean moved into one of The SLC Group’s apartment projects five years ago and Julie has lived at the same apartment project for ten years.  Living at the project has encouraged Sean and Julie to become more independent and to make positive choices and decisions about how they live their lives.

Sean explains: “We have both lived at the project for a long time and so last year decided we wanted to live together in our own home. The first thing we did was speak to staff as we wanted to be more independent but didn’t know what we could do.”

SLC Group Locality Manager Gary Jones has supported Sean and Julie throughout the whole process. He explains: “Sean and Julie decided they wanted to live together in their own home. They have become very close over the years and wanted more independence – so we began to look into the different options with them. We worked with St Vincent’s Housing Association to source a house. They told us what the budget was and Sean and Julie went out to look for some houses in the area within this agreed budget.” Gary adds.
 
Julie and Sean started to research  potential areas they would like to live and then sourced properties in  their favourite areas. “We went to estate agents and picked up some brochures and information about houses.” Says Julie. “We looked around quite a few houses – but fell in love with this one straight away!”
 
The next stage involved St Vincent’s purchasing the home and Sean and Julie moving in as their new tenants. Sean and Julie’s support staff from The SLC Group have continued to support them in their new home. "It's a quiet location and the house is brand new so it is very modern.” Says Sean. “Our neighbours are very friendly, there is a local pub across the road for Sunday lunch and the shops are close by. It’s perfect!”
 
Sean and Julie have access to an SLC Group on-call Locality Manager  who is close by if they need support during the night. “The biggest change is staff not  being just next door if we need them.” Says Julie. “The first night was really strange, but we are slowly getting used to it.”

Sean agrees: “We know the numbers to call if we need anyone, but so far we haven’t used it. It is just good to know staff are there if we ever need them. "It’s this reassurance of support and the positive attitudes of Sean and Julie that have made the move such a success. Gary says: “From the beginning we wanted this house to be Sean and Julie’s home so we have made sure they have been supported to make decisions about everything - from picking furniture to deciding what colour to paint each room.”
 
Prior to the big move SLC Group staff supported Sean and Julie to save money for new furniture. “We went shopping and got our new dining table and our couches,” says a proud Julie. “We picked everything but still have quite a few more things to get.”
 
Like anyone moving into their first house together Sean and Julie are making sure their home is perfect. Together with their support team they have developed an action plan for each room in their house so they can save and buy key items each month.  “This approach means Sean and Julie are creating their perfect home and are categorising essential and desirable items for their home and buying them over time. In a sense they are mapping their future the way they want to.” Says Gary.
 
The next move for the housemates is to work with staff to look at the hours they receive their support. The aim is to look into the options of changing the times they receive their support based on their new life and new routines.
 
“Sean and Julie are growing in confidence every day and our focus now is to make sure that their support is focussed on their changing needs. I am delighted for Sean and Julie and we are all very proud at how they have made their big move such a success.” Adds Gary.