‘Very proud’: How Lifeways supported Luke, who lives in Cheshire, to build confidence and skills – and prepared him to move out!

Luke, who we support, is now preparing to go and live by himself – after receiving just two years of support from Lifeways.

Luke’s in his twenties. He grew up with his parents, and lives with learning disabilities, autism, depression, and anxiety. 

In July 2020, Luke moved to his own apartment at Mount Court, a Lifeways supported living service in Winsford, Cheshire. It’s a 20-minute drive from his parent’s house.

Like at all Lifeways supported living services, Luke’s transition gave him the best of both worlds: independence when desired, and support when needed.

Limited skills

When Luke first moved in, he needed a lot of support.

“Luke had very limited skills to enable him to live independently,” says Jonathon Parrott, Mount Court’s Service Manager.

Apart from cooking and tidying, which Luke has always done regularly, he lacked the confidence and skillset needed to do activities by himself.

This meant that at first, Luke required support from his team to go into town, pay bills, cook, or order a takeaway.

Growing confidence

However, Luke’s support team took the time to understand his needs, and assisted him to build his confidence. This required plenty of one-to-one time.

Steadily, Luke’s confidence began to grow. After working with his support team over two years, Luke can now:

• Enjoy meaningful interactions with new people
• Go jogging by himself
• Go to the local gym, where he takes part in a mixed martial arts class
• Cook a meal from scratch, using fresh ingredients
• Visit local eateries
• Go shopping
• Launder and iron his clothes
• Pay bills

What’s next for Luke?

‘Very proud’

Like many successful supported living transitions, Luke’s now looking to make the leap to move out and live by himself, without support – and find a partner.

While Luke’s team are not professional matchmakers, they’re happy to have worked with Luke so he’s in a position to support a relationship.

“Luke should be very proud of himself and the progress that he has made,” adds Jonathon.

“We’ll be continuing to support Luke as he makes the transition to go and live on his own.”

 

About Mount Court:

At Mount Court, individuals are supported to live independent lives – with support when needed. The support is tailored to each individual and people are supported in their homes and out and about in the community. 

Set over three floors, Mount Court is made up of 12 purpose-built one-bedroom apartments.

A Lifeways support team is on site 24/7.

Mount Court is part of Lifeways.

About Lifeways:

Lifeways is the UK’s largest team of support professionals providing support for adults in the community.

We support adults with diverse and complex needs, including learning disabilities, autism, physical disabilities, acquired brain injuries, and mental health conditions. 

As the supported living sector’s largest team of professionals, Lifeways’ extensive experience and national reach mean we deliver extraordinary support to adults, enabling them to live fulfilling and independent lives in the community. 

Our 11,000 colleagues currently support almost 5,000 individuals who live in our 1,500 supported living and residential services across England, Scotland, and Wales. 

Find out more about how we change people's lives at: www.lifeways.co.uk  

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