Staff and young people came together to plant sunflowers, marking the start of something beautiful. But this wasn’t just about gardening. It was about teamwork, nurturing growth, and creating a vibrant, therapeutic environment for all.

Some staff even added a musical touch—playing Mozart to their plants in a light-hearted but caring effort to help them grow. This friendly competition only strengthened the house’s already positive atmosphere.

Celebrations like this showcase the creativity and community spirit that set Care in Mind apart. By encouraging young people to participate in activities that connect them with nature and each other, we continue to support emotional and mental wellbeing in meaningful ways.

At Ashurst, growth is more than physical—it’s emotional, personal, and shared. Events like these remind us that even small moments can make a big difference.

Thank you to everyone at Ashurst who got involved and made the day so special. Here’s to more days filled with sunshine, teamwork, and blooming potential!

The post Growing Together: Ashurst celebrates National Plant a Flower Day appeared first on Care in Mind.

The CQC said “The service was led by a management team who demonstrated outstanding values. They showed excellent insight into the complex needs of the people who they cared for and greatly valued and supported their staff team… The way the service was led meant outcomes for people empowered them to grow in confidence and learn new skills.”

The full report can be found here:  Lyndhurst – Care Quality Commission (cqc.org.uk)

Registered Manager Danny Rawcliffe said of the report; “It is so nice to see all the references in the report to individual pieces of work that contribute to the overall picture of what makes Lyndhurst special.” 

The Executive Management Group said “A huge congratulations to Lyndhurst for this achievement in their first CQC inspection. Thank you for all your hard work in achieving this result, we really value the work you do!”

The post Lyndhurst achieve ‘Outstanding’ rating for Well-Led in latest CQC report appeared first on Care in Mind.

According to an article published by the Guardian, eating disorder referrals have seen a stark rise during the pandemic of 2020/21, with lockdown causing eating disorders to thrive and available treatment being significantly impacted by pandemic-related issues. Additionally, the number of routine referrals rose from 915 in April to June 2016 to 1,850 in the first three months of 2020, this number then continued to rise to a record high from July to September, as it went up to 2,001. This data is based on routine referrals starting treatment in the community for children and young people. However, even prior to the pandemic, referrals have been rising, with a NHS Digital press release based on the Health Survey for England finding that 19% over women aged 16 and over screened positive for a possible eating disorder when question on their relationship with food in 2019. The same survey also found that almost one in eight men also screened positive for an eating disorder. This ongoing epidemic is clear when reviewing the eating disorder hospital admission statistics for 2018-19, which not only highlights the growing number of young people diagnosed with eating disorders, but also the amount that fall into the more complex category of ‘Other’, where they don’t fit into the bulimia or anorexia category.

Introducing Edge Brook

At Care in Mind we have spent the last few years working on developing a specialist service for young people with complex eating disorders. Over the years, we have seen ourselves the truth behind the headlines and statistics, and witnessed the increase in demand across eating disorder services and stretched capacity nationwide for Specialist Eating Disorder Unit (SEDU) inpatient beds. During this time period our own data also shows an increase in referrals for our core services for young people with a primary diagnosis of an eating disorder, or comorbidity with complex mental health needs.

In 2021 we opened Edge Brook, our first specialist residential service for young people with complex eating disorders. The service has been built on our core model of care, with additional specialised support for eating disorders.

Our commitment to least restrictive practice and the way in which we care for young people will reflect our core service offer. Therefore, there is an expectation that young people are of stable physical health and have managed at least 6 weeks without tube feeding by admission. Not only is this to ensure we can care for residents in the most therapeutic, least restrictive environment, but also to provide the best chance for a successful journey through our pathway to independence at a time when the young person is ready.

Developing Edge Brook was a lengthy process. We engaged in research in many forms, and held consultation sessions to gain insight from individuals, and their parents/carers, who have been treated by community and inpatient eating disorder services. These sessions were run by our Service User Coordinator who is also an expert by experience, and our Clinical Director. Individuals were given a chance to openly discuss their thoughts and feelings about the service following a brief explanation of our model of care for the service. Additionally, we worked closely with a dietician to gain valuable and specialist advice towards helping us to develop protocols.

Consultation Event Feedback

The research gathered during the consultation event was invaluable and gave us an important insight into what is truly required from an effective eating disorder service. Several key themes emerged from the feedback:

Hope: One of the strongest themes identified was the importance of hope, particularly when in inpatient settings where young people may feel stuck, and it can be difficult to be hopeful for the future and a life outside of hospital. Often young people in hospital with eating disorders can be subject to lengthy inpatient stays, or become ‘revolving door’ patients which may be down to a lack of appropriate pathways out of hospital. Giving young people the hope of a community-based residential treatment option could positively impact their motivation to move on from hospital.

Recovery: Another key theme was the importance of recovery from a ‘whole-person’ perspective. Participants felt that often there is an understandable focus on stabilisation of physical health but they felt it was important for services to consider what recovery means for each individual, and thinking about developing a sense of agency and achievement outside of their Eating Disorder identity. Ways we may do this include giving them more control over their lives, something we already do in our core residential homes, so that they are able to make decisions such as when they want to see their friends or what education they want to access. It’s important that young people are given this space for independence so that they can re-learn and build up their confidence in how to do everyday tasks that may have been done for them whilst in hospital.

Independence: Ensuring the building of independence skills will be a core focus, and it is important this is done in a way that meets people at their current level. Many of the young people we work with may feel de-skilled in many areas following lengthy inpatient stays and it is important that independence goals are developed around their needs and priorities. As with all elements of our service planning, the person-centred nature of this is key.

Individualised Care Planning: Individualised care planning is incredibly important to the way in which we work at Edge Brook. We believe eating disorders cannot be treated with one single approach, particularly when working with individuals with different diagnoses. Recovery goals for each individual are tailored, based on maintaining and developing their own physical health and independence-related goals. Goals are developed in collaboration with young people to support their understanding of exactly why we do what we do, and why this will benefit their journey to recovery. Additionally, we take the time to explain to young people why it is that everyone in the home has differing goals and care plans, but that everyone will receive the same high level of input and support.

Systemic Approach: Our participants highlighted the importance of joined up and consistent care, both within and across systems. At Edge Brook, building relationships and collaboration with local stakeholders is essential; particularly where a young person may require a short term re-admission to hospital to support stabilising their physical health. With collaboration, effective communication and clear joint working protocols, our hope is that admissions are short with a joined-up approach, supporting the young person to return to Edge Brook in a safe, structured and planned way.

Identity: The final key theme that emerged from the consultation event was Identity and in particular, who the young person is regardless of their eating disorder. Often young people who have had extensive inpatient admissions can feel robbed of key developmental stages in their adolescence which can lead to struggling with their identity outside of being a patient. Enabling young people to develop an identity is important whether that’s through giving our young people the ability to decorate their own rooms or supporting their interests in a new hobby.

The Home & Staffing Model

In many ways, our staffing model for Edge Brook reflects that of our core homes, however, as this is a specialist eating disorder home, we have additional specialist staff to support the complex and differing needs of the young people. We provide dietetic input through a specialised dietitian as well as in-house chefs to help young people create healthy, balanced meals (where appropriate). The home has increased physical health monitoring in comparison to our core service. This will be to ensure we are maintaining the physical aspect of the young people’s health as well as the psychological side of their recovery. Staff who work within the home have been carefully selected, to ensure that the right people are chosen for what is a challenging job. Like with our core service, staff are well supported through regular staff support sessions and reflective practice in addition to standard supervision, as we know that supported, happy staff are more effective in supporting the young people.

As with all of our homes, Edge Brook has a homely, caring feel and our young people are given a say in how to decorate both common areas and their own rooms. Furthermore, outside the home, there is a wealth of green space, including a duck pond and allotment. This will provide a mindful space for young people.

To make a referral or to find out more information about our services, please call the team on 0161 638 3285 or email referrals@careinmind.com

The post Introducing Edge Brook appeared first on Care in Mind.

Inspectors examined services offered in December. They rated it ‘Good’ overall, and in each of the individual categories; safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led. The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns around risk and the CQC noted that although there were risks present due to the young people’s mental health needs, these risks were mitigated appropriately with clear and robust procedures in place to monitor and manage this. They also noted that were appropriate staffing levels to support this with staff well qualified to work with vulnerable people. The report said,  “Staff at Ashurst were extremely well supported. There was a thorough induction programme and ongoing appropriate training throughout their employment.”

Inspectors found that the culture at the home was positive and inclusive, people’s needs were thoroughly assessed, and care plans included appropriate health and personal information. They noted staff worked with other agencies and professionals to ensure the young people’s needs were met appropriately with the young people being treated with respect and compassion.

Julie Smith, Business Development Director at Care in Mind said, “Ashurst is one of Care in Mind’s newest specialist residential services (opening in May 2021) and we are proud that in their recent CQC inspection, they achieved good in all outcomes. In particular, the young people felt cared for, treated with dignity and respect and that their opinion mattered.

The report also reflects how we work collaboratively with all external stakeholders and deliver individual person-centred care, carried out by well trained and skilled staff. We are always focussed on achieving the best outcomes for the Young People in our care, providing them with the skills to work towards independent life in the community.”

You can read the full report here.

To make a referral or to find out more information about our services, please call the team on 0161 638 3285 or email referrals@careinmind.com

The post Ashurst Achieves a ‘Good’ CQC Rating appeared first on Care in Mind.

Inspectors carried out an examination into services offered at the end of August. The CQC rated the home ‘Good’ overall, with each of the individual categories; safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led each receiving a good in their domain.

Inspectors noted that staff had received the appropriate training and supervision to help support young people effectively. Staff were also praised for supporting service users in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests with the policies and systems in the service that supported this practice.

The inspection report also noted that staff worked closely with other health and social care professionals to ensure that young people received appropriate and timely care with Stubblebank placing a strong focus on developing and maintaining young people’s independent living skills and supported individuals based on their bespoke recovery goals. The report said, “The service had an open and honest culture and staff showed commitment to achieving good outcomes for young people with complex mental health difficulties” 

The post Stubblebank Achieves a ‘Good’ CQC Rating appeared first on Care in Mind.

According to an article published by the Guardian, eating disorder referrals have seen a stark rise during the pandemic of 2020/21, with lockdown causing eating disorders to thrive and available treatment being significantly impacted by pandemic-related issues. Additionally, the number of routine referrals rose from 915 in April to June 2016 to 1,850 in the first three months of 2020, this number then continued to rise to a record high from July to September, as it went up to 2,001. This data is based on routine referrals starting treatment in the community for children and young people. However, even prior to the pandemic, referrals have been rising, with a NHS Digital press release based on the Health Survey for England finding that 19% over women aged 16 and over screened positive for a possible eating disorder when question on their relationship with food in 2019. The same survey also found that almost one in eight men also screened positive for an eating disorder. This ongoing epidemic is clear when reviewing the eating disorder hospital admission statistics for 2018-19, which not only highlights the growing number of young people diagnosed with eating disorders, but also the amount that fall into the more complex category of ‘Other’, where they don’t fit into the bulimia or anorexia category.

Introducing Edge Brook

At Care in Mind we have spent the last few years working on developing a specialist service for young people with complex eating disorders. Over the years, we have seen ourselves the truth behind the headlines and statistics, and witnessed the increase in demand across eating disorder services and stretched capacity nationwide for Specialist Eating Disorder Unit (SEDU) inpatient beds. During this time period our own data also shows an increase in referrals for our core services for young people with a primary diagnosis of an eating disorder, or comorbidity with complex mental health needs. We are therefore delighted to be opening Edge Brook, our first specialist residential service for young people with complex eating disorders, later this year. The service will build on our core model of care, with additional specialised support for eating disorders. During the development process, our Clinical, Residential and Executive Management teams have worked hard to ensure that Edge Brook will provide a safe, helpful space for young people to recover and successfully integrate back into the community.

Our commitment to least restrictive practice and the way in which we care for young people will reflect our core service offer. Therefore, there will be an expectation that young people are of stable physical health and have managed at least 6 weeks without tube feeding by admission. Not only is this to ensure we can care for residents in the most therapeutic, least restrictive environment, but also to provide the best chance for a successful journey through our pathway to independence at a time when the young person is ready.

Developing Edge Brook has been a lengthy process, and one that has been taken very seriously by those involved. We have engaged in research in many forms, and held consultation sessions to gain insight from individuals, and their parents/carers, who have been treated by community and inpatient eating disorder services. These sessions were run by our Service User Coordinator who is also an expert by experience, and our Clinical Director. Individuals were given a chance to openly discuss their thoughts and feelings about the service following a brief explanation of our model of care for the service. Additionally, we have worked closely with a dietician on a consultancy basis to gain valuable and specialist advice towards helping us to develop protocols.

Consultation Event Feedback

The research gathered during the consultation event was invaluable and gave us an important insight into what is truly required from an effective eating disorder service. Several key themes emerged from the feedback:

Hope: One of the strongest themes identified was the importance of hope, particularly when in inpatient settings where young people may feel stuck, and it can be difficult to be hopeful for the future and a life outside of hospital. Often young people in hospital with eating disorders can be subject to lengthy inpatient stays, or become ‘revolving door’ patients which may be down to a lack of appropriate pathways out of hospital. Giving young people the hope of a community-based residential treatment option could positively impact their motivation to move on from hospital.

Recovery: Another key theme was the importance of recovery from a ‘whole-person’ perspective. Participants felt that often there is an understandable focus on stabilisation of physical health but they felt it was important for services to consider what recovery means for each individual, and thinking about developing a sense of agency and achievement outside of their Eating Disorder identity. Ways we may do this include giving them more control over their lives, something we already do in our core residential homes, so that they are able to make decisions such as when they want to see their friends or what education they want to access. It’s important that young people are given this space for independence so that they can re-learn and build up their confidence in how to do everyday tasks that may have been done for them whilst in hospital.

Independence: Ensuring the building of independence skills will be a core focus, and it is important this is done in a way that meets people at their current level. Many of the young people we work with may feel de-skilled in many areas following lengthy inpatient stays and it is important that independence goals are developed around their needs and priorities. As with all elements of our service planning, the person-centred nature of this will be key.

Individualised Care Planning: Individualised care planning will be incredibly important to the way in which we work at Edge Brook. We believe eating disorders cannot be treated with one single approach, particularly when working with individuals with different diagnoses. Recovery goals for each individual will be tailored, based on maintaining and developing their own physical health and independence-related goals. Goals will be developed in collaboration with young people to support their understanding of exactly why we do what we do, and why this will benefit their journey to recovery. Additionally, we will take the time to explain to young people why it is that everyone in the home has differing goals and care plans, but that everyone will receive the same high level of input and support.

Systemic Approach: Our participants highlight the importance of joined up and consistent care, both within and across systems. At Edge Brook, building relationships and collaboration with local stakeholders will be essential; particularly where a young person may require a short term re-admission to hospital to support stabilising their physical health. With collaboration, effective communication and clear joint working protocols, our hope would be that admissions can be short with a joined-up approach, supporting the young person to return to Edge Brook in a safe, structured and planned way.

This systemic thinking also relates to how families and carers are able to be involved, which was important to our participants. Edge Brook will offer Family Therapy and interventions but it will also consider other ways they can be supported to engage with the service, in a way that is helpful and appropriate for the young person. Gaining the understanding and appropriate input from parents and carers will help to provide a level of consistency when visiting home, but also if the young person is to return home when transitioning out of care back into the community.

 Identity: The final key theme that emerged from the consultation event was Identity and in particular, who the young person is regardless of their eating disorder. Often young people who have had extensive inpatient admissions can feel robbed of key developmental stages in their adolescence which can lead to struggling with their identity outside of being a patient. One of the suggestions for supporting this was a peer support group, led by individuals who are in recovery, with the aim of providing hope for a future outside of services, but also sharing practical suggestions that have worked for others. This is something we hope to be able to provide as the new service opens, and we will be liaising with experts by experience to support the facilitation of this.

The Home & Staffing Model

In many ways, our staffing model for Edge Brook reflects that of our core homes, however, as this is a specialist eating disorder home, we will have additional specialist staff to support the complex and differing needs of the young people. We will provide dietetic input through a specialised dietitian as well as in-house chefs to help young people create healthy, balanced meals (where appropriate). The home will also have increased physical health monitoring in comparison to our core service. This will be to ensure we are maintaining the physical aspect of the young people’s health as well as the psychological side of their recovery. Staff who work within the home have been carefully selected, with input from our Managing Director, Sharron Amri, to ensure that the right people are chosen for what will be a challenging job. There will also be an enhanced training programme to prepare those working in the homes. Additionally, like with our core service, staff will be well supported through regular staff support sessions and reflective practice in addition to standard supervision, as we know that supported, happy staff are more effective in supporting the young people.

As already mentioned, the home will have enhanced physical monitoring, and to allow for this, we will have a clinic within the home. However, a lot of thought and consideration has been put into ensuring that this clinical aspect does not make the home feel like a hospital. As with all of our homes, Edge Brook will have a homely, caring feel with young people given a say in how to decorate both common areas and their own rooms. Furthermore, outside the home, there is a wealth of green space, including a duck pond and allotment. This will provide a mindful space for young people, but also the ability to grow their own food, helping them in approaching and considering food in a more healthy and holistic way.

We will be sharing more detail about our progress towards opening this exciting new service in the coming months. If you would like to speak to someone for more information please contact 0161 638 3285

The post Developing Edge Brook appeared first on Care in Mind.

Below, he shares how teamwork and kindness brought his idea into fruition, as well as details of the day itself:

Care in Mind consistently practice with inclusivity, which I feel particularly aware of as a transgender man. Therefore, when it came to planning Care in Mind Pride 2020, I was not surprised by the enthusiasm my colleagues and Residential Manager, Dominic, encountered my idea with. Every step of the way, Dominic has been incredibly supportive in bringing the idea to reality, ensuring we had enough budget for decorations and rainbow party food!

Additionally, we were met by extreme kindness from local businesses and charities who donated prizes and runway clothing for the day. Refuse To Conform clothing donated some prizes and gifts for the young people to thank them for their hard work towards making the day such a success. And, it was a local charity shop, West Kirby Cats Protection, that helped us pick out some amazingly fabulous runway outfits.

The big day itself was a complete success; from the planning to the main event, and finale, of the Runway Extravaganza, both staff and residents were completely enthralled. Fun and games were enjoyed throughout the day, even during a game of ‘throw wet sponges at management’! We also enjoyed a blindfolded mocktail game, which brought out everyone’s competitive side.

When it came to the finale, our Ru Paul Runway Extravaganza, everyone was utterly amazing and completely exceeded expectations. Residents strutted the runway, blossoming with confidence, and got completely into the spirit of the event.

Reflecting on the day, young people commented: “It was a great day”, and “let’s do it again next year!”

The event perfectly celebrated the diversity we have within the service, both amongst staff and young people. It was a lovely way to recognise how diversity promotes success and why we should all feel proud to embrace who we are. Everyone involved in the day seemed to take a lot from it and left with a smile, and many of those involved in the runway event even discovered a new hobby – dressing up in drag!

The post Cherryhurst Pride Celebration appeared first on Care in Mind.

Getting involved in projects is not only a rewarding way to spend time, but it is also a great opportunity for the young people and staff to engage with each other. Subsequently, the young people often take the lead in planning projects, and recently, a Yorkshire hub home resident formulated their own idea of a project to involve their home and local community.

Their idea was to create a positivity tree to lift the spirits of their local community during the coronavirus pandemic. As a home, the young people worked on putting together boxes to share around the local area containing a positivity bauble, wooden heart, a leaflet about the home, an explanation of the ‘Positivitree’ and a small sweet treat. They were then dropped off to houses around their local community.

In the box, there were instructions for individuals to write their own positive message or quote onto the wooden heart. The purpose being to hang these messages on the tree, thus creating an inspirational and happy place.

On a sunny evening in June, the local community were invited to drop by and hang up their positivity bauble and wooden heart. Whilst done in a socially-distanced and safe way, it allowed the community and home to come together and be introduced to each other. Furthermore, the staff shared with the community a little more information about what Care in Mind does, to help them understand why what we do is so vital.

The project was hugely successful and everyone had a lovely time. For the young people involved, it was an opportunity to showcase their creativity and kindness. The ‘Positivitree’ now symbolises the sense of community created that day as well as a place of understanding and inspiration. 

Due to the event being such a success, the young people of this home are now thinking of other ways they can engage with the community going forward!

The post Home Project: The ‘Positivitree’ appeared first on Care in Mind.

Cherryhurst is located in West Kirby, Wirral, and will offer specialist residential placements for up to 5 young adults aged 18-30 with complex mental health needs. Working to Care in Mind’s established and innovative model of care, the service will support young people presenting with high levels of complexity and risk in the least restrictive setting.

Young adults may transition to Cherryhurst from inpatient settings, and we can also provide an alternative to hospital admission as we are able to manage significant levels of risk in a least restrictive community environment. Our unique model provides 24/7 on-call and crisis intervention, to support young adults to maintain their community placement and avoid readmission.

Our evidence-based model of care is supported by a structured MDT including Clinical Nurse Specialists, Psychologists and Consultant Psychiatrists.

Cherryhurst is a spacious, detached property located in a quiet community setting. The house has a large open plan kitchen/lounge area, as well as a second lounge, providing plenty of communal space for the individuals placed there. There are 5 bedrooms, some with en-suite bathrooms.

The new service expands our offering in the North West of England, providing much needed additional capacity for young adults to be supported in the least restrictive environment out of hospital settings.

Our Managing Director, Sharron Amri says of the new service;

“We are delighted to be opening Cherryhurst, which will be our ninth home in the North of England. The home is in a great setting, which will support our young adults to make progress towards recovery and ultimate independence”

How can I refer for Cherryhurst?

For more information, or to make a referral, please contact our Business Development Team on 0161 638 6385 or email referrals@careinmind.co.uk.

The post New Service opening soon: Cherryhurst, West Kirby appeared first on Care in Mind.