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A new development in Grimsby was officially opened this week to enable and support vulnerable adults to live independently. Eleanor Apartments is made up of 12 self-contained apartments that have been specially adapted to help people develop their independence and have their own space.

The apartments were refurbished thanks to the partnership working between NHS North East Lincolnshire Clinical Commissioning Group, Homelife Supported Accommodation, a specialist developer of health and social care schemes, and Inclusion Housing, a social enterprise and registered housing provider.

Mark Webb chair of the North East Lincolnshire CCG and Cllr Jane Hyldon-King, portfolio holder for Health and Wellbeing, kindly opened the apartments and met with all the tenants and their families. The tenants offered guests refreshments afterwards and proudly spoke of their new homes and what it meant to them.

Dean Harris, explained “Since I’ve come here I think I have become more independent, I enjoyed living with my mum, but felt it was time to branch out. I’m very house proud and like to make sure my flat is clean and I’ve learnt how to be friendly and talk to people more than I did before. I was quiet and nervous but my confidence has grown and I know that if I have any problems there are people I can go to for support.”

One of the first tenants to move in Lucy Sinclair, had made three previous attempts at living independently and she has successfully settled into her apartment and said “I like living here because I feel safe and secure and looked after and I enjoy the activities.” Lucy has even got fish as pets that she has fondly named after the staff. 

Tenants began moving into the building in May and all apartments are now occupied with people of different ages with varied needs and support. The popularity of Eleanor Apartments highlights the demand for this type of housing that will provide vulnerable adults with their independence. In response to the need, this is the now the third apartment model scheme delivered between NELCCG and Inclusion Housing for the benefit of vulnerable adults in North East Lincolnshire.

“Supporting people’s independence is very important,” explained Angie Dyson, service lead disability and mental health. “The development of these apartments allows people to develop important skills and live independently with the right amount of support by using their personal budget. The environment and architecture of the development is geared up to supporting tenants to carry out daily tasks themselves and mix with their peers by sharing budgets and maximising support available.” 

The scheme is now fully occupied, which shows there is huge demand for this kind of development. Tenants Personal Budgets are delivered in partnership by Care4all and Navigo Extra. The Housing provider running the scheme and acting as landlord is Inclusion Housing which is a social enterprise and registered housing provider.

Neil Brown, CEO at Inclusion Housing, added: “This joined up partnership approach to the provision of independent living from the CCG in North East Lincolnshire has enabled the delivery of these high quality apartments for the benefit of local people. We’re really proud of the scheme and our continued relationship with the CCG.”