Independent Living Team hosts visitors from Down Under

Southern Housing’s Independent Living Team welcomed an opportunity to showcase their services when they hosted Australian care provider, BaptistCare, last Wednesday (8 May).
The housing provider gave a guided tour to the team from BaptistCare at two of its independent living schemes in south east London.
BaptistCare specialise in age care in Australia, providing nursing homes, home care, community services and community housing. Keen to learn more about models and financial structures in older people’s and affordable housing, they’ve headed to the UK, where the sector is considered more advanced than in Australia.
Southern Housing’s Independent Living service was recommended by the National Care Forum as a team doing great work to align and improve services, following the merger of Optivo and Southern Housing Group in December 2022.
During the visit, Charlotte Rooke, Head of Independent Living at Southern Housing, and Bernie Ahern, Team Manager, led tours around Leeds Court, a smaller 1970s building, and Halton Court, Southern Housing’s largest scheme, built around ten years ago.
Guests also had the opportunity to ask plenty of questions and to meet with residents, including Mavis and Shirley, who have happily lived at Leeds Court for many years.
The feedback from guests was overwhelmingly positive, with Judy, who led the visit, saying: “It was so interesting and helpful to hear about all the work the team are doing, developments planned, and service delivery of all the differing services you provide. You certainly, tangibly, demonstrated Southern Housing as a best practice organisation.
“It was a treat to speak with Mavis and Shirley – that to us was the strongest demonstration of your positive confidence in your own best practice.”