Aspects and Milestones Trust: Making a difference

Source: Healthcare Digital

Date :01/11/2008 00:00:00

This UK-based health and social care charity provides community care services for older people, those with learning disabilities and mental health needs.

Written by Eleanor Wright and Produced by Paul Radbourne

For 21 years now health and social care charity Aspects and Milestones Trust has been offering community care services. The organisation has been going from strength to strength in that time, increasing its geographical reach and developing its specialist services.

CEO Mel Akers (pictured) explains that the charity’s steady approach to expansion and its insistence on paying off debt means that unlike some other similar operations it has remained in a position to continue growing.

“Our cautious approach has won through,” he says. “We have just £7 million debt on a £30 million turnover whereas some private companies who operate similar services to ours are finding it very difficult at the moment.

“From now on we are hoping to achieve a growth rate of between five and 10 percent a year. Again, that’s fairly cautious but we are a people to people organisation. Growing by 10 percent allows us to help an extra 100 people.”

Aspects and Milestones Trust was originally founded in 1986 with a mission to serve people with learning disabilities and people with mental health needs who had lived most of their lives in long stay hospitals. The aim of the organisation was to buy houses and run small scale residential homes, where people could live ordinary lives after years of living in institutions. The Trust was able to fund the developments using health grants, social services funding, welfare benefits and private finance.

In the 1980s, however, the government issued new proposals to help health authorities move people from long-stay hospitals into domestic-scale community settings. Two of these programmes were carried out by Frenchay Community Care Trust and Southmead Mental Health Care Trust.

In 1996, Frenchay and Southmead Care Trusts joined forces and staff, previously seconded by the NHS, transferred to the employment of the new combined charitable trust, Frenchay and Southmead Care Trust. The organisation later changed its name to Aspects and Milestones Trust.

GEOGRAPHICAL EXPANSION

Today, from its headquarters in Bristol, Aspects and Milestones Trust, which has assets totalling £15 million, operates services in the greater Bristol area – this includes South Gloucestershire, Bath, Gloucestershire and North Somerset.

More than 1,200 members of staff work together to support some 600 people in their own homes or in residential or nursing homes. The trust is also involved in community-based day care services and supported employment projects.

Aspects and Milestones is run by a board of volunteer trustees and a senior management team of professional staff. It also has a growing volunteers programme and an in-house agency.

Funding comes from the local authorities, social services, primary care trusts and other agencies, as well as the individuals themselves.

“We work within 60 residential properties, 40 of which we own ourselves – others are owned by housing associations or local councils,” says Akers.

“We are expanding geographically. We have recently launched one service in Gloucester and are about to announce the development of a new dementia care centre there too. We are currently evaluating different sites, and are hoping to open it in two and a half years time.”

WORKING ACROSS BOUNDARIES

The Trust has always put particular emphasis on training, stresses Akers. It is a registered NVQ centre and all staff must achieve a qualification.

“The government has set a target that 50 percent of people working in health and social care should hold a nationally recognised qualification. We are achieving that while lots of others in the industry are lagging behind,” he says.

“We are very keen on training and on looking after our staff well. This industry traditionally has a high staff turnover rate of 25 percent but ours is approximately 11 percent.”

The success of the trust is based on four key features, Akers explains. It has the flexibility to work across the boundaries of health care, social care, housing and employment.

It can innovate and act quickly to fill service gaps. It is focused and close to service users and carers and it can access a mixture of funding streams.

“Looking ahead to the future, I think there will be a decline in residential services and an increase in supported living at home. As people live longer, we will also be focusing more on dementia care,” Akers explains.

“In many ways, we are in a unique position when it comes to our services. One member of our staff can spend time with one of our customers and is able to monitor how he or she is doing and feedback in three separate areas.

“Health, housing and social services can all benefit from the way we are able to serve our customers.”