Where can I live?
Where can I live when I'm 16 or 17?
Foster care – this is where you live in a family as one of the family. You will have your own room and can get to choose how you would like it to be decorated, choose your bedding and make decisions with your carers as to how to live together in this arrangement.
The family receive a professional fee for looking after you. They also receive an allowance for caring for you.
This allowance is to help you get to school/college, take part in activities, hobbies, buy clothes and items for your room, go on holiday, take part in school activities etc.
While in the foster placement they would provide you with pocket money and would help you learn the routine of the family and encourage you to take part in activities around the home that support you in learning about those jobs and routines that are necessary when you live independently.
If you are happy with your foster family and they also want you to stay, this can become a staying put arrangement on your 18th birthday. This means the local authority will continue to provide financial and practical support to your foster carers up to your 21st birthday.
Residential Care – This is where you would live with other young people in a house and where you are cared for by people who do not live there with you. The team would work to a shift pattern but who would always be there to help you get up and go to school or college, help you take part in holidays and activities, visit family and friends. There would always be someone there with you and you would not be allowed to remain in the residential home on your own. You would be expected to move from here on or before your 18th birthday in most cases.
Supported accommodation – This means living in a flat where support staff live with you, or visit you for set periods of time over the week, it can also be having a self contained flat that is connected to other flats and where there are tenancy support staff available to help you. This support can be up to 24:7 or it can be as low as a couple of hours a day.
This provision can be shaped to meet what you and we think you need. This can be offered because you and we think you are ready to experience something that is a better balance between independence and what can feel at times the restriction of foster care or residential care.
You can move into these types of arrangement from age 16, however we would prefer this move on arrangement was delayed at least until you have completed year 11 at school.
In Rotherham there are a range of options in this category
Hollowgate – 9 self contained flats with 24:7 support available at the accommodation. Young people must be engaged in education, employment or training to access this accommodation
Dispersed tenancies – this is where young people move on from their foster placement, residential placement or other types of supported accommodation to their own accommodation. It is where they would have access to a certain amount of support hours per week to make sure they are managing their new home and all the pressures of living independently. This is a solid interim status before you take over the final tenancy. This arrangement offers an extra bit of protection before you become fully responsible for your home.
Supported Lodgings – this is the equivalent of renting a room in someone’s home. It can be living in a family but not necessarily as part of the family. There will be people there to seek advice from or to gain some emotional support. You would have a key and could come and go as you please. You would need to be engaged in some form of education, employment or training for this option.
The House Project:
The House Project offers young people the opportunity to be in control of their future homes. Our House Project is developed with young people to maximise their ownership. The young people, with adult support, learn to project manage the refurbishment of properties which become their homes. If you are interested in becoming part of the House Project and are 15 ½ to 16 ½ talk to your social worker.
Here are some links to videos to young people from another area who participated in their local project
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYwk8i6_efA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPguGXlrhrs
And here is a link to the National House Project