Voyage Care - 17 Walsworth Road

Specialises in: Behavioural support, Learning disability

17 Walsworth Road is a service for six people with a learning disability and associated needs. The aim of the service is to provide a warm, welcoming and safe environment while promoting independence, encouraging individuals to lead as ordinary a life as possible and supporting them to develop new skills and experience new opportunities.

The service is situated in Hitchin, Hertfordshire and is a five minute walk from the town centre, where numerous shops and amenities are available. The service is easily accessed by public transport; the centre town bus stop is only 300 metres away from the home and the nearest train station is half a mile away and gives easy access to London through Stevenage, and Peterborough and other towns in the north.

The people who live at 17 Walsworth Road are supported to choose and access a wide range of group and individual activities. These may include swimming at local swimming pool or at the Keech Hospice Hydrotherapy pool, bowling, visiting parks, meals and refreshments out, going to the cinema and personal shopping.

Other activities, tailored to specific health and educational needs and interests, are identified through assessment and detailed on the individual’s care plan. Examples include a day centre, an out and about ‘Men’s Group’ through a local resource centre, horse riding, undertaking a course at the one of the local North Herts College campuses or working in garden centre projects such as Earthworks.

Each individual has their own bedroom with en-suite facilities. There are two bedrooms on the ground floor and four on the first floor. The service also has a large dining room, a lounge, a kitchen, an activity room, a conservatory and a laundry area. All rooms are tastefully decorated and people are encouraged to personalise their own bedrooms. The vacant room is on the first floor.

There is a large garden to the rear of the property, featuring a vegetable patch, a patio area with a barbecue and garden furniture and an open grass area.

We empower and support people to make choices in their everyday lives. Everyone is supported by experienced members of staff to build everyday life skills, such as cooking, cleaning, and personal shopping.

Everyone is also encouraged to participate in the recruitment and selection process of potential staff members and monthly meetings are held to discuss any concerns, issues or ideas for the service. The people we support and their families and friends have input into individual person centred care plans and are involved to achieve the best possible outcomes. Families are highly involved and many have weekly visits while others visit when they are able to.

The staff team is supported by a number of professionals including GPs, Community Nurses, Psychiatrists, Occupational Therapists, Psychologists, Speech and Language Therapists, other medical professionals.

There is a large car park to the front of the building with ample parking for staff and service vehicles.