What is Transitions?
Transitions is a key focus from the beginning of the young person's journey through Glebe House, with young people being supported to develop the independence skills they need to safely reintegrate into the community.
Transitions Programme
Pre-Transitions
Pro-social skills where our young people form positive, trusting relationships with staff and other young people.
Formal transitions planning starts six months before the end of the young person’s placement at Glebe House. A member of the Transitions Team will coordinate with the young person, their family (where appropriate), and external professionals to develop a robust Transitions plan and prepare them for their life in the community.
Transitions Planning
Learning how to explore and understand cultural and religious identity.
There is an opportunity, in the last few months of a young person’s placement, to go and live the independent bungalow in the grounds of the main house. As a result, they gain experience of managing their own lives day-to-day, of shopping, cooking, budgeting, and learning to co-exist with their house-mates, while again remaining under a measure of protection and supervision from staff based in the main house.
Initial Transition
Communalism, democracy and consensus along with tolerance and co-operation are demonstrated and learned.
We provide an Outreach Service, which provides the young person with support, helping them transition from an intensive therapeutic setting back to the community. We also give the young person an option of a Circle to provide a supportive social network that enables purposeful reintegration into the community while managing the risk of further harmful sexual behaviour.
Final Transition
Trustworthiness and transparency along with peer support are elements of the safety module.
We provide ongoing support with 'Setting up your home': what accommodation might look like; utility bills; buying furniture; DIY skills; how to be a good neighbour; tenancy/how to maintain your tenancy. 'Looking After Yourself': internet safety; physical presentation and hygiene; approach to Risk.
How we do it
We provide an Outreach Service (for up to 18-months after leaving Glebe House) which provides the young person with support, to help them transition from an intensive therapeutic setting back to the community.
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This takes the form of visiting the young person every six weeks and keeping contact, meaning we remain actively involved in matters of risk and support, playing a key role where there may be multi-agency concerns. This has been particularly important since the outbreak of Covid-19 and subsequent restrictions on contact, which increased the potential threat of isolation.
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We also give the young person an option of a Circle (in place up to a year from leaving Glebe House). A Circle is made up of our leaver, plus a group of three to four specially trained community volunteers. The purpose of the Circle is to provide a supportive social network that enables purposeful reintegration into the community while managing the risk of further harmful sexual behaviour.
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The key benefits for the young person in having a Circle is that it helps with the transition from being in an environment where they are able to share their thoughts and feelings (particularly around their harmful sexual behaviour) into a society where their chances to explore their feelings, or seek advice around practical issues like job interviews (and potential Disclosure), are significantly reduced. With weekly meetings and 3-month reviews (with external agencies, including ourselves, to review how the Circles is meeting the young person’s needs), there is constant support for our young people. Throughout this, a rapport develops that can provide support, whilst also holding the young person accountable for any harmful sexual behaviour. This greatly reduces the chance of isolation.
The Strengths of the Circles Model
Support
Reduce Isolation and Emotional Loneliness
Model Appropriate Relationships
Demonstrate Humanity and Care
Monitor
Public Protection
Safer Communities
Support Statutory Authorities, Police, Probation, MAPPA
Maintain
Hold Offender Accountable
Relationship of Trust
Maintain Treatment Objectives
Reduce Reoffending
National Circles Evaluations
Our partner, Circles UK are the national body supporting the development, quality, coordination and effectiveness of Local Circles, the evaluation of the Circle services sits with them.
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Circles UK sometimes requires Circles Providers to make information available for research purposes. This is always with the express purpose of service improvement and the development of the Circles model for better effectiveness and cost-efficiency.
What does our Transitions Programme involve?
Formal transitions planning starts six months before the end of the young person’s placement at Glebe House. A member of the Transitions Team will coordinate with the young person, their family (where appropriate), and external professionals to develop a robust Transitions plan and prepare them for their life in the community.
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There is an opportunity, in the last few months of a young person’s placement, to go and live the independent bungalow in the grounds of the main house. As a result, they gain experience of managing their own lives day-to-day, of shopping, cooking, budgeting, and learning to co-exist with their house-mates, while again remaining under a measure of protection and supervision from staff based in the main house. The focus is on practical skills covering such topics as:
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`Setting up home`: what accommodation might look like; utility bills; buying furniture; DIY skills; how to be a good neighbour; tenancy/how to maintain your tenancy.
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`Looking After Yourself`: internet safety; physical presentation and hygiene; approach to Risk.
Programme Development
The Transitions programme has been developed following a substantive longitudinal research study that was carried between 2002 – 2014 (Boswell, G.R., Wedge, P., Moseley, A., Dominey, J. and Poland, F. (2014))
The study concluded “this longitudinal study reported on the effectiveness of a therapeutic community for young men in their late teens, who were perpetrators of sexual harm, and were, for the most part, themselves damaged and abused in a range of ways. It found a notable reduction, at departure, of some very serious problems identified by these young men on arrival at the Community. It also found that 84% were not subsequently re/convicted, as against 56% of the comparison group, and that only one person had re/offended sexually and one violently, compared with five each of the comparison group. Those coming to Glebe House at a slightly older than average age, from Secure establishments and with previous multiple care placements, were at higher risk of dropping out of the therapeutic programme than those without such characteristics; and those dropping out were considerably more likely to re/offend sexually.
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After leaving Glebe House, the majority of young men who had completed the programme were not in stable employment, but were coping well in other key areas such as accommodation, family relationships and healthy lifestyles, and making the best of their limited circumstances. They had benefited from independence preparation, but would have appreciated more of this. They would also have benefited from ongoing external professional support where this had been absent, or ceased prematurely." View the report below.
The Glebe House Circles research evaluation (Dominey and Boswell 2018) highlighted:
“Transitions work is valuable and sustained relationships” and that “the use of Circles of Support and Accountability is currently the best chance our young people have of being supported not to re-offend. The gap between an intensive 2-year Therapeutic placement where supervision levels need to in place and the move to an area where the young person may not have lived in before and if they had it was when they were younger is vast and a support framework that provides a regular, frequent presence and the opportunity to build a supportive rapport is invaluable. View the report below.