At Handcrafted, we believe in creating safe, empowering spaces where young people can develop independence and thrive in their communities.

This Statement of Purpose outlines the provision of supported accommodation services for looked after children and care leavers aged 16/17, detailing our accommodation, support, organisational structure, safeguarding measures, and complaints procedures.

This statement will be reviewed as required and at least annually by the group or individual responsible for review and authorised by the Trustees as below:

Group or individual responsible for review	Deputy Director of Operations: Young People
Last review and approval	28/11/2024

Overview

Registered Address

Handcrafted Projects, Unit 7 Skillion Business Centre, Littleburn Industrial Estate, Langley Moor, DH7 8HG

Registered Manager

Harry Jennings

Categories of Supported Accommodation

Categories 1 and 2

Mission Statement

Handcrafted’s mission is to connect with the excluded people in society and offer support, housing, training, and opportunities that can empower them to turn their own lives around.

Handcrafted Ethos

Handcrafted have four key values that underpin all support offered to young people. They are:

Creativity - everyone can make something to be proud of
Empathy - we will walk through challenges together, shoulder to shoulder.
Empowerment - everyone can learn to take back control in their lives.
Community - we accept people just as they are, and we support each other.

Charitable Objectives

To promote social inclusion for the public benefit by preventing people from becoming socially excluded, relieving the needs of those people who are socially excluded and assisting them to integrate into society.
The relief of financial hardship by providing people with goods and services which they could not otherwise afford through lack of means.

Principles

We are dedicated to offering holistic support that empowers individuals and fosters their growth, well-being, and independence. Our policy is built upon a foundation of key principles that guide our approach to housing provision and support services:

Person-Centred Approach

At Handcrafted, we place individuals at the heart of everything we do. Our person-centred approach ensures that each resident's unique needs, preferences, and aspirations are at the forefront of their support journey. We believe in recognizing and respecting the inherent dignity of every person, tailoring our services to create a supportive environment that truly values and celebrates individuality.

Trauma-Informed Care

Understanding the impact of trauma is essential to our approach. Our trauma-informed care recognizes the potential histories of adversity that our residents may carry. We aim to create a safe, empathetic, and non-judgmental space that acknowledges and responds to trauma, fostering healing and resilience.

Strengths-Based Perspective

Every individual possesses strengths, talents, and capabilities. Our strengths-based perspective seeks to uncover and amplify these inherent qualities, empowering residents to harness their potential and build a foundation for personal growth and self-sufficiency.

Appropriate Risk Taking and Harm Reduction

We understand that growth often involves taking risks. Our approach to risk-taking emphasizes informed decision-making and harm reduction. We encourage appropriate risk-taking that supports residents in exploring new opportunities while minimizing potential harm, enabling them to navigate their path to independence with confidence.

Solution-Focused Approach

Our solution-focused methodology directs our efforts toward identifying practical and actionable solutions. We collaborate with residents to overcome challenges and barriers, working together to create a positive and constructive path forward.

Accommodation Provision

Handcrafted accommodation for young people is for unaccompanied asylum seekers and indigenous care leavers preparing to leave the care system. We anticipate young people (16-19 years old) living in Handcrafted accommodation; predominantly but not exclusively male young people; with each house containing between one and eight young people dependent on support needs identified at the point of referral and through regular in-house and multi-agency reviews.

All Handcrafted properties’ appropriateness is reviewed at least annually, incorporating both the fabric of the building and local area. When young people move into Handcrafted housing, it is made clear to young people that Handcrafted is a service available for as long as required. As an operator of supported housing for adults, we anticipate that a number of young people will continue to require support after their eighteenth birthday. All young people sign a license agreement with Handcrafted when they move in, which is not time limited or age dependent. All rights and terms and conditions are outlined in this.

As part of the support for young people, support workers do regular house checks to communal areas, and to individual bedrooms where appropriate. These checks ensure that the space is furnished well; that the space feels safe and secure; identifying and removing any hazards; ensuring there are no additional fire and health and safety risks; and that any maintenance tasks are passed on to our housing team in a timely fashion.

Handcrafted ensure that young people feel their space feels like it is their own. We encourage young people to personalise and decorate the house, which support workers help with (painting, putting up pictures etc.). Handcrafted involve young people in all decisions about their living space to suit their individual needs and personalities.

When young people start living in a Handcrafted house, we ensure that they are registered with a GP within the first three days of living there, and are registered with a dentist and optician within the first two weeks of moving in. Within the first two weeks, support workers also have conversations with young people about what their interests and needs are, and Handcrafted staff find and liaise with services in the community which young people can access. They can be statutory services (e.g education, healthcare) or tailored to interests and lifestyle (e.g religious groups, sports clubs, barbers, shops, gyms). Support workers will explore the local area with young people identify opportunities for community and social integration, and assist young people to be involved. We help young people attend all appointments and access college and groups they are interested in.

Handcrafted provide community activities to gather young people who in the first instance struggle to engage with wider community activities. We run catering sessions which we invite young people to take part in or to teach other young people how to cook. We have regular meals where we eat together, to build safe friendships between young people within Handcrafted’s service and similar young people living with other providers. We run cultural activities for all young people to experience the local area, and to explore parts of their immediate community and other parts of the North East.

Our housing has doorbell cameras which staff can access. We do not have surveillance inside the properties to respect privacy of the young people. All young people are informed about the doorbell cameras and understand that the purpose is not to spy on them, but rather to keep them and their living space safe. Doorbell cameras are regularly reviewed to check the safety of the young people. As part of our regular house checks, support workers check that the external and internal doors are lockable and safe.

All our houses and bedrooms have adequate internet connection. Support workers ensure that young people have mobile credit, allowing them to call Handcrafted staff or other services in the event of emergency. Provision of basic items is similar between category 1 and 2 housing, outlined below.

Category 1 - Single Occupancy

Each single occupancy house or flat has a bedroom, a kitchen, bathroom and lounge/living space. Handcrafted provide all furniture reasonably expected (bed, mattress, bedding, wardrobe, drawers, desk and chair, towels, sofas, dining table, oven and hobs, microwave, kettle, toaster, kitchen equipment, television, washing machine, airer).

Category 2 - Shared Housing

Each young person has a private lockable bedroom. Each bedroom is supplied with the following: bed, mattress, bedding, wardrobe, drawers, desk, chair and towels. Each house then has a shared kitchen, bathroom and lounge/living space. Handcrafted provide all furniture reasonably expected (sofas, dining table, oven and hobs, microwave, kettle, toaster, kitchen equipment, television, washing machine, airer).

Any additional individual needs for any space is adapted for the young person. Whether at point of referral, or during ongoing visits, support workers identify any issues that arise and work out solutions with young people (e.g., young people observing a halal diet have to go out of County Durham to buy halal food, so our support workers put time aside to drive them to a halal shop every week).

Organisational Structure

Support Provision

Handcrafted promote an asset-based approach to all work with young people. Through identifying strengths and passions with young people, we shape our support to empower them to turn their lives around to pursue positive things in their lives. We regularly consult young people in key working sessions about what they want to strive for, and break that down to manageable steps for that week/period. Through key working sessions, support workers remind young people what their entitlements are. Young people are reminded this is also in their license agreement. If young people have a question about the license agreement, through difficulty understanding or reading it, staff will ensure they read this for young people and talk them through any arising issues.

Support workers attend appointments with young people, work to a personalised independent living plan, and work on individualised progression routes. We help young people take steps towards independent living in the community without needing Handcrafted support.

Support workers offer individually tailored support in key working settings, helping young people learn key skills for adulthood including budgeting, healthy routines and positive coping strategies. Staff create a independent living plan, outlining parts of independent living that young people can do unaided, and parts that still need support. This is reviewed weekly as part of our support planning meetings.

The support workers also organise and deliver group activities, providing supportive community settings for peer-learning and to build positive relationships between young people. A mix of social activities and practical skills training helps young people identify and build on their own strengths to grow their own identity and sense of purpose. We work on this unaccredited training whether young people are attending other education or not.

As young people feel a sense of belonging to a community, they grow in confidence and motivation, developing their sense of self-worth. This empowers them to face the difficulties of transitioning into adulthood, with the added challenges of leaving the care system or starting life in a new country and community. Our support workers help them access other key services for social integration, including health, employment and financial appointments, formal education and local amenities such as gyms and green spaces.

Safety & Integration

All Handcrafted staff receive regular training about safeguarding in line with our safeguarding policy for adults and children. As an organisation working with vulnerable adults and children, we wish to operate and promote good working practices. This will enable us to support trainees and residents, develop good relationships and minimise the risk of false accusations. Practice guidelines and related policies are available to all staff members. These include:

Record Keeping Guidelines - How to make sure that your written records are accurate and relevant.
Lone Working Policy - How to protect yourself and others from risk of harm or false allegations in the context of lone working.
Confidentiality Guidance - How to handle confidentiality issues and what to do in cases where a trainee or resident discloses something that you will need to act upon.

Handcrafted staff work with young people to access medical appointments and support for physical and mental health issues. As part of our induction for young people, we ensure all young people understand how and when to contact the emergency services in critical moments.

External contacts for staff reporting incidents for adults and children are outlined in the safeguarding policy.

Complaints & Protection

Handcrafted encourages young people to comment on the standard and quality of the services received. This information can be used to improve the service and to address bad practice.

Complaints by or on behalf of young people can be raised with Harry Jennings (registered manager - harry@handcrafted.org.uk). If the complaint is about the registered manager, then this can be raised with Dan Northover (CEO - dan@handcrafted.org.uk). The appropriate individual will then supply the complaints policy.

A person involved in the support or protection of a young person can access child protection policies by asking their registered manager.

Complaints Procedure

Handcrafted encourages young people to comment on the standard and quality of the services received. This information can be used to improve the service and to address bad practice.

Complaints can be made for a number of reasons:

Substandard quality of service
Behaviour of a member of staff
Poor attitude of a staff member
Not providing adequate support

Confidentiality will be maintained throughout the complaints procedure. Only those staff that need to know about the complaint will have access to details.

Management support will be offered to young person from the outset of a complaint. Access to independent advice or help will assist with overcoming many of the barriers that young people may encounter. This may be from friends, relatives, advice centres or local advocacy group.

Complaints may take the form of a formal letter or email addressed to a member of the Handcrafted management team, or they may be made verbally when an individual states that they wish to make a complaint, which will then be recorded in writing and referred to the line manager at the appropriate level.

All complaints will initially be dealt with by the Manager. The complaint will be acknowledged within 3 days of receipt and will be responded to within 10 days. If the matter can be sorted out quickly and to the satisfaction of the young person at this stage, it will not be necessary to treat it as a formal complaint.

All complaints, whether formal or informal, are always discussed through the line management structure and are logged.

Contact Details for Complaints

Name: Harry Jennings

Role: Registered Manager

Postal Address: Handcrafted Projects, Unit 7 Skillion Business Centre, Littleburn Industrial Estate, Langley Moor, DH7 8HG

Email Address: harry@handcrafted.org.uk

Name: Dan Northover

Role: CEO

Postal Address: Handcrafted Projects, Unit 7 Skillion Business Centre, Littleburn Industrial Estate, Langley Moor, DH7 8HG

Email Address: dan@handcrafted.org.uk