Supported Living for Hackney Residents

How does Hackney Council refer someone for supported living?

Adults with a learning disability: ILDS

The City & Hackney Integrated Learning Disability Service (ILDS) is a joint health and social care team run by Hackney Council and East London NHS Foundation Trust. It works from the Hackney Service Centre behind the Town Hall and from St Leonard's Hospital in Hoxton. Anyone can refer: the person, a relative or a GP. Call 020 8356 7444 or email learningdisabilitiesduty@hackney.gov.uk, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm.

ILDS works with adults aged 18 and over who have a learning disability and a Hackney GP. Autistic adults without a learning disability, and people with a brain injury acquired in adulthood, go through Adult Social Care instead.

Everyone else: Adult Social Care

Use the council's request for adult social care support or phone 020 8356 6262. The council usually calls first and visits if it needs to. A Care Act assessment has to show eligible needs before the council will fund supported living anywhere.

Turning 18

ILDS says it may start working with a young person while they are getting ready to move from children's to adult services. If your son or daughter has an EHCP and is in their mid-teens, raise supported living at their annual reviews, so that adult services are involved well before their eighteenth birthday.

Mental health

For someone under East London NHS Foundation Trust's City and Hackney mental health services, Hackney social workers based in those teams carry out the Care Act assessment, so ask the care coordinator to raise supported accommodation.

Getting from Hackney to our homes

All three homes are on the far side of London from Hackney. Rough door-to-door times from the middle of the borough:

• Whitton: about 75 to 90 minutes. Mildmay line trains from Hackney Wick, Homerton, Hackney Central and Dalston Kingsland run through to Richmond without a change, which takes about an hour, then a South Western Railway train goes on to Whitton via Twickenham.
• Kingston upon Thames: about 90 minutes. Take the same Mildmay line train to Richmond, then the 65 or 371 bus to Kingston.
• Uxbridge: about 80 to 100 minutes. From Dalston or Hackney Central, take the Overground to Highbury & Islington and the Victoria line to King's Cross, then a Metropolitan line train to Uxbridge. From Woodberry Down, some Piccadilly line trains from Manor House run through to Uxbridge, but it is a long ride.

By car, all three usually take 60 to 90 minutes.

What changes, and what stays with Hackney

Under section 39 of the Care Act, someone Hackney places in supported living in another borough usually remains Hackney's responsibility. Chapter 19 of the Care and Support Statutory Guidance sets out the rules.

Health care is different. ILDS's health team works with people who live in Hackney and have a GP there, so a move to Twickenham, Kingston or Uxbridge normally means registering with a new GP and using the local NHS learning disability and mental health teams. A daily place at a Hackney day service, such as the council's Oswald Street Day Centre in Clapton, stops being practical. Ask the social worker for a written handover plan before anyone moves.

Who pays for supported living for a Hackney resident?

If the assessment shows eligible needs, Hackney Council funds the support. It then carries out a financial assessment to work out whether the person pays anything towards it. Rent is separate, and in supported living it is often paid through Housing Benefit. Someone with a primary health need may qualify for NHS Continuing Healthcare. Hackney also offers direct payments, paid every four weeks, usually onto a prepaid card, which can be used to arrange support yourself. We quote only after we have assessed the person. See our guide to paying for care.

Your tenancy and your care are separate agreements

The person has a tenancy or licence with a landlord, which gives them rights as a tenant. Their support follows a care plan from a CQC-registered provider. JNP Sidona is registered for personal care and has not yet been inspected, so it has no rating. Ask us how the two agreements work at the home you're considering; the homes are described on our supported living page.

Questions worth asking before a move across London

• Who is the landlord, and what will the person sign: a tenancy or a licence?
• Who else lives there, and does the person get a say in new housemates?
• What support is there overnight?
• How will the person keep their links to Hackney, such as family, a place of worship, a club or friends from college?
• Can we try a short respite stay first?

What we can help with in Hackney

• Homes in Whitton, Kingston and Uxbridge
• Permanent or respite stays
• Support with daily living skills
• Help to build independence
• Tenancy and care explained clearly
• Community, day centres and outings
• Visit before you decide
• Referrals from social workers welcome