Shared Lives is an innovative scheme that provides care and support for adults with additional needs. It allows them to live as part of a home environment within the community.
Shared Lives Care is designed for adults who may have, learning disabilities, physical disabilities or mental ill health, as well as supporting older people who need assistance to live a better quality of life.
It is an innovative and holistic alternative to residential care homes, and enables them to live independently as a tenant usually within a family household.
The person is carefully matched with a family, couple or single person who are employed as shared lives carers. Share lives carers support people to meet their care needs, helping them to develop life skills, including developing friendships and roots in their community.
Arrangements can be live-in (living as part of the carers family), or short term, such as short-breaks (respite).
How much does it cost?
Shared Lives is funded by the Council's adult social care. Costs vary according to the care needed for each person. Individual cases will be assessed to determine costs.
Transition from Fostering
When a child reaches the age of 18, foster children will move from children's care services to adult services.
To help ease this transition for children with a disability, if it is better for them to remain with their current foster carer, they can remain to live as an adult in that household.
They will then be able to continue to receive the care and support they need in a familiar environment. Their foster carers will be able change their status and become Shared Lives carers.
Shared Lives can accept referrals from age 16 to support with the transition process into adulthood.
Our Carers
Shared Lives carers can offer as little as a few hours care a week, to the occasional overnight stay, short breaks, or live-in placements in their home.
Being a Shared Lives carer really is a rewarding career offering a fantastic opportunity to make a real difference to people's lives. Full training and ongoing support is always available, as well as help, advice and many other benefits.
