Launch of Perth and Kinross Shared Lives Service

Monday 3 June 2013

From left - Colin Paton (Perth and Kinross Council), Austen Smyth (TRFS), Joanne McGraw (TRFS), Shirley Douglas (Perth and Kinross Council), Lynn (Shared Lives Carer), Roxanne (Service User), Lorna Donoghue (TRFS) and Angus Greenshields (Shared Lives Plus)Lorna Donoghue and her team officially launched the Perth and Kinross Shared Lives Service on the 16th May 2013. Lorna and her team were joined by around 40 guests for the launch including representatives from the Local Council alongside Austen Smyth, George Welsh, Jock Welsh, Wendy Williamson and Irene Kidd from The Richmond Fellowship Scotland. The event was also open to the public and there was a great turn out with many applications for the Service requested on the day.

One of the main highlights of the day was a question and answer session with the help of Joanne McGraw and her team that run the Shared Lives Service in Lanarkshire. A big thank you to Roxanne and Lyne for participating in the event.

Angus Greenshields from Shared Lives Plus tied up with day with a Shared Lives speech giving information on his role to promote and develop the Shared Lives model across Scotland and also gave a bit more information about what Shared Lives entails -

“I feel that it is a really exciting development and one that clearly demonstrated that Perth and Kinross Council are actively looking to expand the choice of care and support services that are available to local people. I am particularly pleased that the responsibility for setting up and running this new Shared Lives Service will lie with The Richmond Fellowship Scotland. The Richmond Fellowship Scotland already has extensive experience in the provision of similar high quality services in other parts of Scotland.

My role is a 3 year development post funded by the Scottish Government and looks to promote and further develop the Shared Lives model across Scotland, both in terms of geographical coverage, but also in the groups of people that it can be offered to.

I think the fact that The Scottish Government have put in significant financial support to fund my post and in the past other development roles, it is a clear indication of how strongly they feel Shared Lives can provide high quality, personalised support, which  is cost effective, and also aligns closely with the aims and objectives of many of the current policies and initiatives, such as the Self directed Support Act and the Carers Strategy”.

If you would like any further information on the Perth and Kinross Shared Lives Service then please contact the team on 01738 440 012.

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