Kingfishers Ebley

We enable young people to develop independence, take responsibility for their lives and to manage the transition from adolescence to adulthood. The ultimate aim of a young person's placement at Kingfishers is for them to develop the skills that will enable them to live in their own homes within their community with minimal support.

Achieving our aims

In 2008 Norah Fry carried out some independent research on Kingfishers, the overall findings on how well we achieve our aims were:

• Enabling young adults with learning disabilities to reach their potential
  Staff work well with tenants in a person-centred framework including peer support. Young people are supported to gain skills and confidence in themselves and their ability to increase in independence.
• Supporting young people to overcome factors within society which restrict them
  Kingfishers has a 'can-do' approach that works hard to help young people overcome barriers. They interact well with community organisations, families and other statutory bodies to provide innovative and individualised ways of supporting young people.
• Enabling tenants to move on from Kingfishers into independence or semi independence
  Young people reported significant gains in their independent living skills in a broad range of areas of their lives. There were concerns about what happened to tenants once they had left Kingfishers, and whether their skills and confidence would increase or diminish.
• Enabling tenants to take control and responsibility for their lives
  There was clear evidence that tenants were empowered to take responsibility for themselves in lots of different ways. Staff and young people are prepared to take risks, which is respected and valued by family members and other professionals.
• Meeting the aims set out by supporting people (including the promotion of choice and independent living)
  Tenants have a high degree of choice about their activities and there is ample opportunity for community involvement, social interaction and enhanced friendships and social life.

Our Services

Young people live at Action for Children Kingfishers for an average of 2 years, before moving on to their own tenancies. Our services include:

• A licence agreement
• Person-centred planning that focuses on finding out what is important to each young person
• Support with budgeting and benefits
• Support with paperwork
• Advice on staying safe
• Talking through problems
• Support with finding work
• Support with finding accommodation
• Support with practical skills such as travel, cooking and cleaning

Kingfishers is within walking distance of the local bus route between Stroud and Stonehouse, which both have mainline train stations.

Referrals to Kingfishers can come from a social worker, family member or other professional. We will invite you to look round, complete an entry assessment and find out whether Kingfishers is the right placement for you or your child. For more information on this and what you can expect from a placement at Kingfishers, please contact us.

These comments were taken from our latest 2012 feedback questionnaire: