About the home
Independence House is located in Poole, a short walk from the Dolphin Centre, Poole Bus Station and train station.
The home provides supported accommodation for young people aged 16 and above who are low risk and working towards living fully independently in the future.
The home is registered for up to five young people who are supported by the team to develop their life skills and independence skills in order to prepare them for independent adult life.
The team complete regular reflective sessions, workshops, support sessions and AQA awards with the young people in order to support and develop their skills in areas such as cooking, cleaning, laundry, budgeting, problem-solving and employability skills in order to support them into moving on to live successful lives independently.
About the home
The home is a beautiful spacious property close to the centre of Poole and has five large bedrooms for the young people and an additional bedroom for the team.
All bedrooms have en-suite bathrooms. The home has a large kitchen-diner which is used as a communal space and for the team to support the young people with their daily living skills.
There is a large back garden and a large outhouse which is used as a meeting room and games room for the young people
Matthew Rogers
Team Leader
Matthew Rogers is the home manager and has extensive experience working in children's homes having joined Beaufort Care Group in 2017. Matthew holds Level 5 Leadership and Management and moved over to Beaufort Support Services in 2023. Matthew leads a small team at independence House of three support workers who all have a range of different experience working with young people.
How we care
Our young people have a dedicated support worker, who provides day-to-day guidance and advice. The support worker works alongside them on a pathway plan and goal setting.
Each young person has the chance to reflect on decisions they have made, learn from these experiences and identify future aspirations. The support worker’s role is to act as a good parent and listen closely to the young person’s needs and wishes and promote positive decision-making.
Learning essential life skills
Our team provides considerable support to help residents develop independence and take responsibility for attending appointments and managing their health and wellbeing. They are encouraged to cook their own meals, with our support, and take care of their laundry. All residents have their own front door and room keys.
We arrange regular workshops on budgeting, managing money, healthy eating, CV writing and other practical topics.
There are monthly house meetings so that everyone can express their views or make suggestions about the running of the home. We also organise regular movie nights and Sunday roasts.
