The Claire Patricia Steeples Trust (CPST) is a small Family Trust set up in 2007 to support and administer the Claire Steeples Self Directed Support (SDS) Personalisation Package.
The Trustees are:
John Steeples, Claire’s father, a retired British Diplomat.
Jennifer Steeples RGN SCM, Claire’s Mother, a retired nurse and midwife.
Richard Steeples (BSc.Hon.), Claire’s brother, Managing Director of TeknoIT Solutions: an IT and Media Company. He provides technical expertise and innovative ideas in support Claire’s Personal Centred plans.
Robert Steeples (BA.Hon.), Claire’s brother a graduate in the 3D Art and Design helped to set up ‘Care for Claire’. He is the Manager (QCF level 5 in Management) and Training coordinator. He is a trained PROACT SCIP Instructor and Communication Coordinator.
He is an ‘Expert by Experience, Family Carer’ for CQC and the Challenging Behaviour Foundation.
Robert was Deputy Manager at ‘Speaking Space’, a Centre of excellence for total communication in Hampshire but in November 2012 he returned as Trainer and Manager for CPS Trust.
In his free time Robert can be seen out on the Solent as a volunteer for the 'Queens Harbour Master',supporting and educating Mariners on the water.
Claire Steeples was born on 13th May 1977 in The Ulster Hospital, Belfast, (her Mother’s nursing training Hospital). It was a long and difficult delivery and Claire was slow to breath and had to be resuscitated. When she was ten months old she had a major heart operation to close a Patent Ductus.
Claire lived in Brussels, Belgium with her parents from when she was 1yr old until she was 4yrs old, and then in 1981 moved with her parents to Prague in the then Czechoslovakia.
After returning to the UK on a Home posting, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) would only find John a further overseas Posting on condition that a suitable residential school in the UK was found for Claire.
In 1984 Claire went to The “Nak” in Helford Passage, Cornwall. Claire was allowed to travel to see her family for school holidays when on Postings to Paris and to Brussels. The “Nak” unfortunately had to close so Claire quickly moved to MacIntyre Wingrave, Buckinghamshire, where she stayed until she was 19yrs old.
In 1988 when she was 19 years of age, Claire moved to Gleneldon, Medstead. This was a new property, she was the first Service user of a new Provider called ILIACE (now ILG / Voyage Care). She continued to spend short but frequent holiday breaks with her family who were then on Postings to Embassies at Brussels Belgium, Vienna Austria and Oslo, Norway. The placement was breaking down and it was suggested that Claire needed 2:1 support to go out in the Community. In 2006 the London Borough of Lambeth offered Claire a Personalisation / Self Directed Support (SDS) package as part of a Pilot Scheme. Whilst Claire’s new home was being set up, she moved temporarily, to a small residential home run by ‘People Potential’, a new Provider set up by the original ILIACE Management.
Claire’s parents sold their home in London and moved to rented accommodation in Hampshire whilst searching for a new home for them and a separate home nearby for Claire. Fortunately it went to plan and Claire moved into her own home under Shared Ownership with Advance Housing in July 2007 with 1:1 PA 24 hr support. A very busy activities programme has been developed. Claire accesses the community on a daily basis along with her PA for support. She has a forecast weekly programme when she swims, rides, cycles, sails, canoes, uses public transport, goes to trampolining, discos and clubs. She regularly visits the cinema, theatre and circus. In 2014 she moved to a new independent, separate, purpose built bungalow, in her parents garden.
Claire’s communication had not developed whilst in Residential Care. There were times when she became very frustrated at not making her needs known. Her family recognise her need to avoid frustration and believe in ‘Total Communication’ so, they have trained and with professional support, set up and developed various support methods including Makaton and Picture Exchange Communication (PECS) along with a system called ‘Claire Control’ that has evolved from ‘TEACCH’ procedures. Claire has learnt to communicate with PECS, at the age of 33yrs; which we are told is quite an achievement as a late ‘entrant’ and very rare.
In Practice:-
In General and by being master (with guidance ), of her own life, the purpose of Personalisation / Self Directed Support (SDS) is working well. A financial sum has been allocated based upon her specific needs and planned necessary outcomes. The present planning focuses on communication and being out and about within the Community. With greater choices of available support Claire is encouraged to be more selective and now enjoys a better quality of life with no significant increase in cost to the budget.
Some Action Points:-
a). In 2010 in support of “Good Communication”, Jennifer and Robert presented a Pyramid Education workshop in London, ‘Supporting Older Students & Adults by using PECS and the Pyramid Approach’.
b).In November 2014 Jennifer and Robert gave a Presentation about the CPST, at the Challenging Behaviour Foundation (CBF) National Strategy Group, focused around ‘Skills, Development & Leadership’
c). In 2013/14 Jennifer has also taken part in Focus Groups/ Workshops with the CBF on ‘Early Interventions’ and National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) ‘Guidelines for the NHS on working with people with learning disabilities whose behaviour challenges’.
d). Jennifer is a Parent Carer on ‘Hampshire Learning Disability Partnership Board’ and has been involved for several years with ‘Personalisation’ Projects / Boards for Hampshire County Council.
e). Claire went on a holiday of a lifetime and full of experiences on board a Cruise Ship. It was a joy to see her sensing the occasion and happily bringing in the 2012 New Year with thousands of other passengers aboard the ‘Independence of the Sea’.
Personal Assistants (PAs):-
PAs receive regular job coaching. After completion of the induction period the PAs have a bi-monthly supervision, are continually coached/ shadowed and are actively encouraged to undertake their QCF Diplomas in Health and Social Care (level 2 or 3) by distance learning. Currently there is no formal qualification available specifically for PA’s. It is possible that a standard PA qualification will be made available in the future and we support the view of minimum Standards necessary along with a sensible Pay Spine Structure to recognise expertise. Claire and the CPST has their own transportable PA Training and Certificates’.