Shared Homes, Shared a Home
Shared lives, can you and would you be able to share your home and family life with a vulnerable adult who has been assessed as being in need of support to live well and do the things they enjoy?
You can live with your shared lives carer for respite care, day support or on a long term placement.
What is Shared Lives
Shared lives is a care and support service provided by The Richmond Fellowship Scotland in partnership with Dumfries and Galloway Council which is for people aged 16 plus who want to live independently in the community with the support of a family.
Shared Lives offers person centred quality care and support, where a shared live carer shares their life home and interests with someone who is assessed as requiring social care. Shared lives carers are supported by Dumfries and Galloway Council and are consistently rated the best quality and safest form of social support.
Is Shared Lives Right For Me?
Being part of a Shared Lives placement is different to residential living where you share a home with other people or where you have a number of different carers providing you with care and support.
- The same carer will get to know you really well.
- You will have a person centred assessment of your individual care and support needs alongside with your social worker.
- There will be a matching process where you and your chosen carer /family will all be assessed for compatibility.
- You will have your own bedroom if it is a respite or short /long term placement that is being provided along with access to all communal living areas.
- Your carer will support you to maintain the skills you have or have forgotten, and you will be enabled to learn new skills both in your home and in the community.
Shared Lives For Me
"Shared Lives has given me purpose in my life, I feel that I have lots of skills and experience that I have to offer and to be able to give a vulnerable adult a chance to enhance their life and enable them to achieve their goals and aspirations is the most rewarding thing I have ever done.
I wasn’t quite sure what to expect at first, but my Shared Lives Coordinator supported me throughout my whole journey to becoming a registered carer, nothing was ever a silly question and through her constant support and guidance I believe I am able to offer up my home to anyone who might need it.”
