EachStep Blackburn forms pioneering partnership with Helen Sanderson Associates

Community Integrated Care is proud to announce a pioneering partnership with Helen Sanderson Associates in our new specialist dementia care service, EachStep Blackburn. The partnership will see us work together to implement leading approaches for providing support that will enable people living in the service to enjoy full, happy and active lives.

EachStep Blackburn is a cutting-edge £5 million dementia care home that is opening this May. The 64 bed specialist service will provide a range of dementia care and support, including respite, residential, nursing and end-of-life care. It has been planned in partnership with our charity and Blackburn with Darwen Council with the aim of modernising local care provision, reducing demand on NHS services and improving quality of life within the town.

In this new partnership, the team at EachStep will fully integrate person-centred practices – practices that help staff to understand how people want to be supported and their aspirations – and Community Circles, through the direct support of Helen Sanderson Associates. Part of the Each Step team will be a Community Circles Connector, who will focus on enabling people to remain connected with their loved ones and to continue to enjoy the things that are important to them in the community.

Community Integrated Care and Helen Sanderson Associates will also be ensuring that all aspects of support delivery at the home are focussed on promoting wellbeing. In doing so, they aspire for the EachStep Blackburn to attain the highest standards in Progress for Providers, a leading framework for measuring the quality of care provision. They will also be using the principles of Individual Service Funds, to ensure that each person has choice and control over as much of their service as possible.

This partnership builds upon Community Integrated Care’s award winning and internationally recognised EachStep model of care. The EachStep approach aims to support people throughout their journey with dementia, providing support that adapts with changing needs. It aims to provide people with tailored support that is delivered by staff who understand their life history, have strong values and are creatively focussed. The partnership with Helen Sanderson Associates and Community Circles will enable this to  go even further, with a strong focus on community connections, choice and control.

The EachStep model also has a strong focus on community engagement, with the aim of utilising its homes as hubs for the entire local community. By welcoming the contributions of local people and groups, EachStep overcomes the isolation that many people with dementia face and draws in the talents of local people. EachStep Blackburn has already developed considerable links with local businesses, community and faith groups, and health and social care professionals.

 Neil Matthewman, Chief Executive of Community Integrated Care, says: “At EachStep Blackburn, we want to provide genuinely person-centred care, delivered by highly trained colleagues with strong values, and to forge great links with the community. This partnership will help us achieve and surpass these goals. We are thrilled to be working together with Helen Sanderson to explore how dementia care can be delivered more creatively, ambitiously and innovatively.”    

Helen Sanderson, Chief Executive of social enterprise Helen Sanderson Associates and lead of charity Community Circles says: “We are delighted to enable Community Integrated Care to build on their existing success and be the first dementia care home to include a Community Circles Connector and build person-centred practices into the way the service works. Every person, and each staff member will have one-page profiles, and the service will be designed around what matters to people, and enable people to have as much choice and control in their lives as possible.”

Background Information

Community Integrated Care is one of Britain’s biggest and most successful health and social care charities. We support over 5000 people with learning disabilities, mental health concerns, autism and age-related needs, such as dementia. Our charity has been recognised with almost 100 prestigious sector awards and nominations since 2014, recognising its ambitious approaches to care delivery.

Helen Sanderson is recognised as one of Britain’s foremost figures in the health and social care sector. She was the Department of Health’s Expert Advisor on person-centred approaches and has created many leading care and support approaches, which have transformed delivery of social care.