Eden Futures has celebrated the hard work of staff members in the company’s Excellence Awards.

After an unprecedented challenging year, the awards recognise the commitment and dedication of Eden Futures’ employees. Some 1300 members of staff deliver care and support packages across the country to adults living in the community who are autistic, have learning disabilities, enduring mental ill health and high support needs.

Commissioned by the Council’s adult social care services, in partnership with a registered housing provider, these services are an important part of the local authority’s overall health & social care strategy.

With hundreds of nominees over the eleven Excellence Awards categories, the talent, hard work and determination of the team throughout the past twelve months has been highlighted right across the business.  There were winners and runners up in service categories including Autism Best Practice, Best Service, Lifechanger, Most Improved Service, Positive Behaviour Support. Individuals were also recognised in the Support Worker of the Year, Extra Mile, Outstanding Leadership, Ambassador, Behind the Scenes and Eden Values awards.

Dawn Berry, CEO, said: “It’s a privilege to celebrate our top performing staff through these awards. It’s been a difficult year and we’ve all been very busy; we assist 650 people across 170 sites, whether that be in shared houses, sole apartments or specialist bungalows. This involves on-site support where staff are available 24 hours a day.

“The whole team has risen to the challenge of delivering great services during a very demanding time and we’ve stayed on track in terms of opening new services and supporting some very complex, vulnerable people, so it’s important to celebrate success.”

ENDS

 The winners were:

We’re delighted to say that all of our registered locations that have been inspected by the Care Quality Commission are now rated ‘Good’.

Sarah Frank, Director of Quality & Governance, says: “I’m proud to lead the Quality Team in an organisation that values excellence and places quality at the heart of everything.  We’re very pleased that all our registered locations, where an inspection has taken place, are rated Good by the Care Quality Commission. This is the result of outstanding teamwork and a values-based approach to supporting people.” 

Eden Futures’ service, Cherry Trees in Nottinghamshire, has been awarded Autism Accreditation by the National Autistic Society, the UK’s leading charity for autistic people and their families.

Autism Accreditation is an autism-specific quality assurance programme. It was set up by the National Autistic Society in 1992 to improve the support available to autistic people in organisations throughout the UK and across the world, including local authorities, NHS trusts, education authorities, schools, colleges and more. To gain Accreditation, organisations must meet a standard of excellence and follow a framework for continuous self-examination and development.

Commenting Lorna Durrant, Head of Specialist Strategies and Outcomes, explains: “This accreditation is fantastic news and is testament to the incredible work the team do supporting autistic people. They clearly demonstrate the vision and values of our business – Brave, Positive, Responsive, Well-led and Caring and Compassionate.

“The service was visited by an accreditation advisor and hosted by one of our autistic Experts by Experience who lives in the service. The advisor found the autistic people we support ‘presented as feeling safe and calm, with proactive and preventative strategies in place to avoid anxiety, confusion, or distress’ and that we demonstrated the ability to help autistic people to ‘understand and regulate their emotions’. The advisor reported it was ‘clear to see that there was an obvious rapport between staff and autistic people with a genuine sense of mutual respect and care.’

“The advisor went on to say; ‘Cherry Trees has a strong staff team who demonstrate an in-depth understanding of the residents they support and show a clear understanding of why they are using specific strategies to support individuals.’ The ‘passion and vision’ of the service manager was highlighted as promoting a ‘‘can do’ attitude and encouraging positive risks to be taken’.

“The Eden Futures Expert by Experience programme was also applauded by the advisor as offering ‘autistic people genuine training and employment opportunities, ensuring that the voices of those with lived experiences are listened to and valued’.”

There are around 700,000 autistic people in the UK. Because it’s a spectrum, every autistic person is different and will have their own strengths and face varying challenges. Some autistic children and adults need 24-hour care and support and won’t be able to work.

Stephen Dedridge, Head of Autism Accreditation (South) at the National Autistic Society said: “Eden Futures’ Cherry Trees service should be very proud of its achievement.  We launched our Autism Accreditation programme over 25 years ago and set extremely high standards, which Cherry Trees has worked hard to meet. We hope other organisations and services will follow their lead and work with us to improve the way they support autistic people.”

Eden Futures announces the winners of this year’s employee Excellence Awards.

With 300 nominees there were 30 finalists and 14 awards presented at the event, which recognised the talent, hard work and determination of the team.  This year’s ceremony saw two new awards introduced; Eden Future Values and Life Changer.

The 2019 winners are:

• Bash Zaffar – Making a Difference Award
• Alyeshia Chocholko – Ambassador Award
• Lee Severns – Extra Mile Award
• Kevin Handley – Best Practice Autism Award
• Helen Lee – Behind the Scenes Award
• Debbie Jagger – Best Newcomer
• Mansfield Team- Positive Behaviour Support Award
• Warwick and Coventry Services – Most Improved Service Award
• Michael Weaver – Apprentice of the Year Award
• Bowbridge Road – Life Changer Award
• Holly Goldie – Support Worker of the Year Award
• Katie Pridmore – Inspiring Leader Award
• Chorley Complex Team – Eden Futures Values Award
• Beamish Court Ollerton – Best Service Award

Dawn Berry, CEO, said: “It’s a privilege to bestow our Excellence Awards on our top performing staff. I’d like to thank everyone at Eden Futures for their tireless determination in driving positive change over the past twelve months.

“As an organisation, our visions and values are born through the dedication and commitment of our employees, who share a strong quality-service ethos. It is our mission to provide bespoke individual support to help people with learning disabilities and mental illnesses live more independent lives, and the Excellence Awards offer us the perfect opportunity to give our staff the recognition they truly deserve.”

Pix: Shaun Flannery/shaunflanneryphotography.com

Eden Futures are proud to announce that they are finalists in three categories at the Laing Buisson Awards, in the categories of Supported Living Provider of the Year, Management Excellence and Rising Star.

At last year’s Laing Buisson Awards, Eden Futures won the Public/Private Partnership category, showcasing their excellence in strategic partnerships with the public and independent sectors.

The team will now attend an evening reception at Park Plaza Westminster Bridge on 15^th November, where television presenter, Alexander Armstrong, will announce the winners.

Andrew Lennox, Eden Future’s CEO, said: “I am immensely proud of the extraordinary work that the Eden Futures team carry out on a daily basis for service users, providing them with the valuable care and support they need to be able to live independent, fulfilling lives in their communities.

“I’m thrilled that their commitment has been recognised and we’re looking forward to attending the Laing Buisson Awards to celebrate the fantastic contribution that so many individuals are delivering to the health and social care sector.”

The Supported Living award looks for ‘excellence in looking after adults with physical or learning disabilities or mental health problems in a supported living setting,’ whilst the Management Excellence award celebrates the company that has ‘delivered exceptional clinical or patient outcomes, financial results or employee engagement.’ A Rising Star recognises an individual in the world of healthcare and/or social care.

Dubbed the Oscars of health and social care, the LaingBuisson Awards celebrate industry excellence and innovative services in the public, private and third sectors.