Latest news

Steve James retires Friday 27 Mar 2020 Today we bid a fond farewell to our ex-Chief Executive Steve James who is officially leaving Avenues after over 25 years. Steve founded Avenues, which was previously Kelsey Care, in 1999 and proudly ...	2020/03/27
CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19): AVENUES RESPONSE Friday 13 Mar 2020 Updated 17 March 2020 The Avenues Group is committed to taking all necessary precautions to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 (coronavirus), in order to protect both the people we support, employees ...	2020/03/13
Michael's gardening experience - Part 2 Wednesday 12 Feb 2020 As part of his Avenues support plan Michael works regularly in a horticulture project in Kent. In this film he shows us around the project, gives an insight into his work and tells us why the project ...	2020/02/12
National Apprenticeship Week - Brendan's story; from football to Avenues Friday 7 Feb 2020 An apprenticeship helped Brendan Owusu-Ansah move from the football field to the Avenues office.  Between 2010 and 2016 Brendan Owusu-Ansah’s daily routine consisted of several hours of morning train...	2020/02/07
Michael's gardening experience bears fruit Wednesday 22 Jan 2020 Working on a gardening project has given Michael Mangan an extensive knowledge of plants and horticulture, and also helped him grow his social circle. “I like to get my hands dirty, the feeling of soi...	2020/01/22
New Group CEO for Avenues Wednesday 15 Jan 2020 Jo Land has been appointed by trustees as the new Group Chief Executive of Avenues. Jo has worked for Avenues since October 2000, and was previously Group Deputy Chief Executive, in addition to her ro...	2020/01/15
Keeping the brothers together - video Monday 30 Dec 2019 When three brothers were in danger of losing support the local council asked Avenues to help. Little by little the brothers are now settling into their new home, finding their independence and discove...	2019/12/30
A Makaton Christmas Celebration Thursday 19 Dec 2019 Staff in one of Avenues' Kent services have been using their skills to create a Christmas Advent Calendar with a difference, a Makaton calendar, which can be used both with people supported at the ser...	2019/12/19
Avenues supports Movember Friday 15 Nov 2019 As an organisation where the male ratio of people we support is over 60%, Avenues has been showing it's support for Movember, the international men's health campaign which brings awareness to prostate...	2019/11/15
A life beyond her label - Christina’s story Friday 8 Nov 2019 People with autism typically need strong routine and order to feel comfortable, but without regulation this can consume and constrict their lives, narrowing their experiences and suffocating their wi...	2019/11/08
Statement on JCHR findings: Time for actions which end “horrific” practices Friday 1 Nov 2019 While we welcome the findings of the Human Rights Committee and are thankful for the attention they have given this issue, unless real action is taken it is meaningless for the people who are being de...	2019/11/01
New training package to support working with families Monday 7 Oct 2019 Our learning and approach us based on our experience of working closely with families like the Mullets Avenues has developed a new training package to support the wider adult social care sector to wor...	2019/10/07
Keeping the brothers together Thursday 3 Oct 2019 Three brothers with learning disabilities,who were struggling to find support, are now enjoying better lives together. Avenues was approached by the county council after the men’s previous service pro...	2019/10/03
Teams respond to food bank shortage Monday 30 Sep 2019 Avenues staff dug deep after hearing their local food bank was running low on supplies. Employees donated more than 100 items which they then delivered to the Trinity Church centre in Bexleyheath...	2019/09/30
Living a good life – Roger’s story Thursday 26 Sep 2019 Having the chance to contribute to the community plays an important role in people’s wellbeing, and it’s no different if you have a learning disability. Avenues has been supporting Roger to create th...	2019/09/26
New Podcast! Relationships, Sex and Disability Wednesday 18 Sep 2019 Avenues has a brand new podcast episode! This month in support of Sexual Health Week 2019 we look at relationships, sex and sexuality for those with learning disabilities.  Statistics reveal that onl...	2019/09/18
Recruitment open day Thursday 12 Sep 2019 Have you ever considered supporting someone with a learning disability to enjoy life? One of our Avenues services in Kingston-Upon-Thames is holding an open day on Tuesday 24 September, so people can...	2019/09/12
Avenues full of surprises for student police recruit Monday 19 Aug 2019 A number of Avenues Services have been playing host to Kent student police officers as they undertake community placements as part of their recruit training. The two day placements are part of the eq...	2019/08/19
Support worker uses poetry to get her message across Friday 26 Jul 2019 An Avenues support worker is using her poetry as a way of strengthening her team's connection with the people they support. Mikila Lake, who works at Oakwood Drive, wrote 'What If it Was Me?' using ...	2019/07/26
A sense of hope - Rachel's story Friday 19 Jul 2019 While ‘life-limiting’ illness must be recognised  and planned for, this medical diagnosis can have a greater impact on day-to-day life than the condition itself. Staff at Hope House have wide experien...	2019/07/19
Award-winning Avenues project continues to inspire and motivate Tuesday 24 Apr 2018 ‘Increased confidence’ and ‘being more connected in the community’ are just some of the participants comments reported in second year of the ‘It Takes 2’ (IT2) project. Findings from Lottery-funded I...	2018/04/24
Gender Pay Gap Data 2017 Thursday 22 Mar 2018 Avenues is a not-for profit organisation which works with people with autism, learning disability, and multiple or complex needs. Our mission is to reduce the disadvantage people face through their di...	2018/03/22
New funding for sight loss project Thursday 8 Mar 2018 Avenues has been awarded new funding to continue its work to address sight loss among the people it supports. The grant from Health Education England follows the evaluation of a pilot project run ...	2018/03/08
Sight training making an impact Tuesday 13 Feb 2018 Avenues is working with The National Institute for Blind People (RNIB) to raise awareness and deliver 'Vision Champion' training, which is centred on how visual impairments link to behaviour that chal...	2018/02/13
Richard's Story Friday 9 Feb 2018 When Richard first moved into Glebe House, our residential service for people with mental illness, he was suffering from severe depression and had as a result attempted suicide. Service Manager Abdul ...	2018/02/09
Avenues training endorsed by Skills for Care Thursday 7 Dec 2017 Skills for Care has confirmed that Avenues is now one of its Endorsed Training Providers, after a rigorous evaluation of the charity’s training and processes. The endorsement framework embeds the Comm...	2017/12/07
Supporting Personal Relationships guide launched Monday 4 Dec 2017 Avenues believes that supporting choice around personal relationships is essential for a fulfilling and meaningful life. Area Manager Malcolm Mitchell developed and leads the organisation’s training o...	2017/12/04
More recognition for outstanding support services Friday 24 Nov 2017 The Group’s outstanding outreach services in Surrey have won a prestigious Surrey Care Award. The recognition follows a CQQ inspection of the services delivered by the Welmede team earlier this year. ...	2017/11/24
CQC praises staff for consistently outstanding work Thursday 23 Nov 2017 The outstanding supported living services provided by Avenues have once again led the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to award us its top rating. The South East team, which works across Kent, Surrey, S...	2017/11/23
Jim's blog: It Takes 2 - ‘Every Contact Leaves a Trace’ Friday 17 Nov 2017 I’m famous - I’ve had a book written about me! Well, I was mentioned in a book … once .. and not by name.  I guess I’m not really famous after all. A former colleague of mine from my policing days ha...	2017/11/17
Praise for development of complex service Monday 6 Nov 2017 (Pictured: Avenues Director Jayne Kilgallen, Executive Assistant Beverley Laurance, Deputy Chief Executive Jo Land with Ralph Michel from NHS England) Our newly-developed property at Amis Avenue op...	2017/11/06
Avenues well installed in Africa Monday 30 Oct 2017 We have invested in an AquAid Water Cooler for our staff to help keep them hydrated throughout the day.   We chose AquAid, because with each purchase an automatic donation is made to the Africa Tru...	2017/10/30
Rob's Blog: My trip to see Man U Tuesday 15 Aug 2017 Rob, who is supported by Avenues, talks about his recent trip to Manchester, and how it gave him the chance to do something he had always wanted to. ‘In April I went to Manchester with my Keyworker f...	2017/08/15
Evaluation of equality and diversity training demonstrates value at Avenues Wednesday 2 Aug 2017 New data, taken from managers’ feedback on our equality and diversity training demonstrates the value and positive impact it has had across the organisation. Our equality and diversity training launch...	2017/08/02
Jim's blog: It Takes 2 - ‘All That Jazz’ Tuesday 1 Aug 2017 As part of my list of ‘things to do’ in 2017 I rashly decided to sign up for a weekly Jazz School at Bromley Youth Music Trust. I filled in the application form, wrote out a cheque (old fashioned I kn...	2017/08/01
IiP recognises Avenues as great employer Wednesday 26 Jul 2017 Avenues has been awarded a silver accreditation against the Investors in People Standard demonstrating our commitment to high performance through good people management. Paul Devoy, Head of Investors ...	2017/07/26
John Taylor, Avenues Trustee, commended for work in the community Tuesday 25 Jul 2017 John Taylor, Avenues Trustee received a commendation at Sevenoaks District Council’s Making it Happen Awards. Martin Chittell, Practice Development Lead for community at Avenues, nominated John for th...	2017/07/25
Luke's Story Thursday 13 Jul 2017 When Luke* first came to Avenues East he was suffering from depression and did not want to leave the security of his bedroom. He now has a full-time job, and the end goal of working for B.T. In Janua...	2017/07/13
A positive behaviour support approach to vision Thursday 25 May 2017 Avenues Practice Development team are working in collaboration with The National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) to raise awareness and deliver 'Vision Champion' training at Avenues around how visual...	2017/05/25
Sophie's blog: It Takes 2 Thursday 11 May 2017 Sophie, ambassador for Avenues project It Takes 2, blogs about her experience of the project and what she enjoys about being a part of the steering group.  I met Carly last year. We met in the Tasty C...	2017/05/11
How we support people moving out of long-stay hospitals Wednesday 22 Mar 2017 Andrea Wiggins, New Project Director at Avenues talks about how we work with people moving out of long-stay hospitals, and support them in the community. Avenues started in 1993 supporting people mov...	2017/03/22
Using systematic desensitisation with people we support Thursday 9 Mar 2017 Sarah Kean, Practice Development Lead at Avenues talks about systematic desensitisation and its value when working with people with learning disabilities and/or autism. So what is systematic desensit...	2017/03/09
My placement at Avenues Thursday 26 Jan 2017 Jazzmin Robinson, trainee police officer, blogs about her placement at one of our residential services in Kent. As part of my police officer training, I was given a placement at Avenues. I didn’t kno...	2017/01/26
Settling into our new service in Seaford Tuesday 20 Dec 2016 Earlier this year Avenues opened two new supported living services in Seaford for people with learning disabilities. We caught up with the people we support there to find out how they are settling in,...	2016/12/20
‘It takes 2’ wins Community Cohesion Award in Greenwich Monday 19 Dec 2016 In October, Avenues project, ‘It takes 2’, won the Greenwich Action for Voluntary Service (GAVS) Community Cohesion Award in recognition of their work in the area. ‘It takes 2’ in Greenwich aims to c...	2016/12/19
Jim's blog: It Takes 2 Monday 12 Dec 2016 Jim Lord, Community Development Worker, updates us on It Takes 2, a project that is building community connections. As we move slightly further down the road on our journey with ‘It Takes 2’ I am star...	2016/12/12
Aisha's blog: getting to know people we support at a new service Friday 25 Nov 2016 Aisha Byamugisha, Service Manager at Amplio House talks about getting to know the tenants at her new service and why she thinks it’s an important part of being a manager. Avenues support five people ...	2016/11/25
James's blog: 'To plant a garden, is to believe in tomorrow' Monday 14 Nov 2016 James*, who lives at Evelyn Fison Mews, talks about planting a garden in his new home and how it gives him hope for the future. Avenues support nine people at Evelyn Fison Mews, a supported living se...	2016/11/14
Welmede and Avenues have merged Tuesday 8 Nov 2016 Avenues Group and Welmede announce today that they have merged. Welmede has become an operating subsidiary of Avenues Group. Our organisations share similar visions and values, making them an excellen...	2016/11/08
Thomas Road holds Macmillan Coffee morning with Great British Bake Off finalist Thursday 3 Nov 2016 After fundraising by completing the ‘Bridge the Gap’ walk in Cambridge, Laura*, one of the people we support at Thomas Road, decided she wanted to hold a Macmillan coffee morning. Avenues supports thr...	2016/11/03
Running the London Marathon for Avenues Thursday 27 Oct 2016 Katrina Copping, talks about why she’s running the London Marathon next April for Avenues and how she plans to reach her £1000 target.   I previously worked at Avenues as a fundraiser and I still help...	2016/10/27
Transforming Care for Children and Young People: Mindfulness, Positive Behaviour Support and Active Support training for parents. Thursday 6 Oct 2016 Earlier this year, Avenues was awarded a Transforming Care grant by NHS England. The grant funded project in Greenwich worked with parents/carers who have children or young people with learning disabi...	2016/10/06
Carly's blog - It Takes Two Tuesday 20 Sep 2016 Carly Halpin, Community Development Worker, updates us on It Takes Two, a project that is building community connections.   Hello from the diverse London borough of Greenwich; a suburb that feels dist...	2016/09/20
Squirrel Lodge team praised for outstanding support Monday 26 Sep 2016 Squirrel Lodge is a supported living service where we support six adults aged 18-30 with learning disabilities and/or autism and behaviour that challenges. Over the past eight months the team there ha...	2016/09/26
Avenues’ new supported living service in East Sussex Monday 12 Sep 2016 Earlier this year Avenues was awarded a contract with East Sussex County Council to manage and provide support at two new supported living properties in Seaford for people with learning disabilities. ...	2016/09/12
National Citizen Service (NCS) programme comes to Avenues in Sutton Friday 9 Sep 2016 As part of the NCS social action scheme 13 young people came to Avenues in Sutton to help renovate an allotment for the people we support.   The NCS scheme aims to bring together young people aged 15...	2016/09/09
Avenues new supported living service in Tunbridge Wells Friday 12 Aug 2016 Over the past two and a half years Chris Crees, Service Manager at one of our supported living services for people with learning disabilities, The Pines, has been working to redevelop the site and get...	2016/08/12
New chair appointed Tuesday 9 Aug 2016 Terry Rich has been appointed Group Board Chair of Avenues Group. As chair, he will be responsible for the overall strategic direction of the group. Terry has unrivaled experience for the position ha...	2016/08/09
'It takes 2' update: July Friday 22 Jul 2016 Jim Lord, Community Development Worker, gives us an update on Avenues project 'It takes 2' and how it's going in Bromley so far. As this is my first blog … ever! I thought I would say a little bit abo...	2016/07/22
Avenues project 'It takes 2' is connecting people based on shared interests Wednesday 22 Jun 2016 It’s Learning Disability Week and this year’s theme is friendship and relationships. We caught up with Carly Halpin and Jim Lord, Project Workers on our new project ‘It takes 2’ which aims to connect ...	2016/06/22
Team from Avenues completes London to Brighton 100km challenge Wednesday 8 Jun 2016 Over the May bank holiday weekend a group of Avenues employees, some people we support, plus friends and family members attempted the London to Brighton 100km challenge. The aim was to raise money for...	2016/06/08
6 quick ways to practice mindfulness during your day Monday 16 May 2016 Mindfulness is an approach that helps people to manage their thoughts and feelings. Chris Gregory, Learning and Development Manager at Avenues has been delivering a mindfulness programme to staff acro...	2016/05/16
Avenues achieves HSCIC compliance Monday 18 Apr 2016 Avenues has recently achieved compliance with the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) Information Governance toolkit (level two). Protecting people’s information is important especially ...	2016/04/18
Common misconceptions about autism Wednesday 23 Mar 2016   To mark World Autism Awareness Day, Regional Director Mickey Gray dispels five false ideas about the condition ... The rainbow-colored infinity symbol represents the diversity of the autism spectru...	2016/03/23
Optua UK name changes to Avenues Monday 1 Feb 2016 Optua UK, the specialist provider of case management and support for people with an acquired brain injury, will now be known as Avenues. Optua UK, which became part of the Avenues group in 2011, has ...	2016/02/01
Avenues secures Big Lottery grant to launch new project ‘It Takes 2’ Friday 13 Nov 2015 Avenues has been granted £300,000 by the Big Lottery to launch our new project, It Takes 2, which aims to match 100 people with learning disabilities with 100 people from the mainstream community who ...	2015/11/13
Avenues exhibits at Challenging Behaviour National Strategy Group Meeting Thursday 22 Oct 2015 Avenues is sharing its experience and learning in Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) at a national event on Thursday 22nd October 2015.  The event is organised by the Challenging Behaviour Foundation’s ...	2015/10/22
CQC rates Avenues supported living service outstanding in all areas – a first in England Monday 7 Sep 2015 An Avenues supported living service is the first of its kind to be rated outstanding in all five areas inspected by the Care Quality Commission.  Avenues is also the first adult social care provider i...	2015/09/07
Avenues tender success in borough of Bexley Thursday 21 May 2015 Avenues London has been successful in securing a contract to manage two Learning Disability support services in the London Borough of Bexley, where our headquarters are based. The two services, Fen Gr...	2015/05/21
Avenues East service wins award for outstanding end of life care Thursday 5 Feb 2015 Avenues is proud to announce that Hope House, a supported living service in Suffolk, has been commended for outstanding support at this year’s Suffolk GEM Awards. The GEM Awards are aimed at support w...	2015/02/05
Avenues chosen to run Bromley support services Thursday 26 Nov 2015 Avenues London has been successful in securing a contract to manage five support services in the south east London borough of Bromley. The contract consists of three existing Avenues’ services and two...	2015/11/26
Video: Supporting Lynda Tuesday 29 May 2018 At Avenues, sometimes because of the complex nature of what we do, we often hear the phrase ‘small steps are giant leaps’. In this short film Avenues staff Judy Kimani and Adenike Okoya reveal how, t...	2018/05/29
Supporting Charley – a Transforming Care case study Friday 1 Jun 2018 Charley (left) loves cooking for people.  Avenues has supported a young woman with autism to end nine years of medication and depression in a psychiatric hospital and begin a new life in her own home,...	2018/06/01
Praise for ‘wonderful’ new transition service. Monday 6 Aug 2018    Left: The property in Bexleyheath will offer transition services under the Transforming Care programme.  Right: Area Manager Sarah Harvey with Regional Director Mickey Gray and Oakwood Drive Servic...	2018/08/06
Young people understand learning disability through school games partnership Tuesday 21 Aug 2018   The annual Royal Hospital School (RHS) and Avenues Games in Ipswich, is a chance for those supported by Avenues in the East of England to mix with their local community through adapted sports and a...	2018/08/21
The effect of respect in support work Thursday 23 Aug 2018 The impact good support has on people’s lives can be extraordinary, and produce results that were never thought possible. The detail of what that really looks like will vary depending on the person, ...	2018/08/23
Kindness and understanding count Friday 7 Sep 2018               Nigel and Mandy Mullett’s daughters, Tori and Emily, have been supported by Avenues for ten years. Nigel shared their insights into the components of great support, and the positive impa...	2018/09/07
'It Takes 2' project's tropical party brings ages, cultures and abilities together Monday 10 Sep 2018 It was another successful event for the Avenues' Lottery-funded 'It Takes 2' (IT2) project recently as they teamed up with Community Centre and Reach Out organisation Mycenae House to host 'Tropic Li...	2018/09/10
Support teams as extended family Tuesday 11 Sep 2018 Giving someone quality support depends on understanding them as an individual – their specific needs, what they like, what they don’t like, their background and simply how they’re feeling today. Conne...	2018/09/11
The use of restraint on people with learning disability - Avenues response Tuesday 2 Oct 2018 This statement is our response to the news that the use of restraint on adults with learning disabilities in hospital units in England rose by 50% between 2016 and 2017*.  "The real issue here is that...	2018/10/02
Society gets a skewed view of social care - Steve James Thursday 4 Oct 2018 It’s widely understood that our social care system is in ‘crisis’, particularly in terms of its workforce. But many people don’t really know what social care is or, more accurately, they just think it...	2018/10/04
Founding CEO to retire in 2019 Monday 17 Dec 2018 Steve James has announced he will retire as Chief Executive of Avenues Group on 31 March 2019.  He said: “Having led the charity since it started 25 years ago as Kelsey Care, I feel it’s time for ...	2018/12/17
Avenues launches Podcast Tuesday 18 Dec 2018 Avenues recently debuted its first Podcast. The podcast, available though Soundcloud, will be an audio downloadable platform to discuss topical stories and developments around learning disabilities, a...	2018/12/18
NHS Long Term Plan - "an integrated strategic response involving health and social care is required", Avenues responds. Tuesday 8 Jan 2019 This statement is a response to the recent publication of the NHS Long Term Plan and in particular the plans for people with learning disabilities and autism.  “The NHS long term plan contains some we...	2019/01/08
Robert's story: Life without restraint Friday 15 Feb 2019 “We all enjoy Robert’s visits– when we see the car pull up it makes us smile and we know to get his coffee going.  It’s then usually a choice between a Viennese Finger or a sausage roll for Robert – t...	2019/02/15
It Takes 2 project reveals successes and limitations Friday 22 Feb 2019 The need for sustainable community engagement has been highlighted in the third discussion paper from the Avenues Big Lottery funded It Takes 2 (IT2) project. The most recent study reveals the succes...	2019/02/22
Gender Pay Gap Data 2018 Wednesday 20 Mar 2019 Avenues is a not-for profit organisation which works with people with autism, learning disability, and multiple or complex needs. Our mission is to reduce the disadvantage people face through their di...	2019/03/20
Tori and Emily; listening to Mum and Dad. Thursday 18 Apr 2019 Working with people's families helps us understand what matters to them, and the way they want to live their life. Nigel and Mandy Mullett are parents to Tori and Emily who are both supported by Aven...	2019/04/18
Jo Land appointed as interim CEO Friday 3 May 2019   Jo Land has been appointed as Interim Group Chief Executive at Avenues, following the retirement of Steve James after 25 years. Jo has worked for Avenues since October 2000, and was previously G...	2019/05/03
CQC report on the use of ATUs - Avenues response Tuesday 21 May 2019 Commenting on this morning’s release of the CQC's interim report on the segregation of people with learning disability or autism in hospital, Avenues Interim Chief Executive Jo Land said:  “The su...	2019/05/21
Panorama 'Hospital Abuse Scandal' - Avenues response. Wednesday 22 May 2019 This statement relates to the findings of a BBC undercover investigation, broadcast on 22 May 2019. Avenues Interim Chief Executive Jo Land said: Tonight’s Panorama was heart-breaking, but came as no ...	2019/05/22
Panorama 'Crisis in Care - Part 1' - Avenues response. Thursday 30 May 2019 This statement relates to the findings of a BBC investigation, broadcast on 29 May 2019. Avenues Interim Chief Executive Jo Land said: Last night’s programme shone more light on the systemic flaws of ...	2019/05/30
It Takes 2 - final report published Friday 14 Jun 2019 Our lottery-funded project to support people with learning disability to build meaningful social connections has been completed.  Between 2016 and 2019 two Community Workers supported eighty six ...	2019/06/14
A job for the boys   Thursday 13 Jun 2019 (l/r) Ethan with fellow support worker Oliver and Kai Effective support services have to be built around the needs of the person, so having the right staff is essential, and this can sometimes require...	2019/06/13
Sophie hits the water Thursday 18 Jul 2019 It’s been all about feeling the wind in her hair as Sophie, who is supported by Avenues in Kent, has recently been taking sailing lessons as part of Wealden Sailability club, an initiative run by the ...	2019/07/18
All Avenues support 'Good' or 'Outstanding', says CQC Thursday 8 Aug 2019 All Avenues support services are now rated as ‘Good’ or ‘Outstanding’ overall, according to social care regulator the Care Quality Commission (CQC).    CQC inspections are comprehensive, and involve e...	2019/08/08