Young Adults Accommodation Appeal

Hoists are a vital piece of equipment that allow safe moving and handling of both adults and children whilst minimising the risk of injury to our staff too. We use them throughout all our inpatient services where rooms have ceiling track hoist systems installed, meaning that those with physical disabilities can be safely moved from bed to wheelchair, physiotherapy couch or bathroom.

To ensure our new Young Adult Accommodation is fully accessible and safe, we will need to install a range of hoists and tracking systems throughout the building. This includes an air rise hoist system for each of the two bedrooms, a monorail track system leading to the shower room and a bathroom hoist. These fixed hoists have several benefits over mobile hoists.

Medical gases are an essential tool to help our staff support young adults who have respiratory issues. The piped oxygen and suction also allow us to maintain a safe environment and are reassuring to parents should we need to intervene during a time of unexpected deterioration. Our new building will need pipework installed to allow the gases and suction to be available throughout.

Our young adults have a range of complex conditions and may require many different types of medication to be taken. Having lockable, easily accessible storage for this medical is essential, meaning it always close to hand and secure. Each of our two bedrooms will have it’s own lockable cabinet, and we require an additional one for the drugs store room.

Every house has a comfy chair, the one everyone fights to get to first. And stretching out on a sofa is something our young adults tell us they enjoy on their visits to Bendrigg residential activity centre. We’d love to furnish the new accommodation with a sofa that suits the young adults needs, while being perfect to snuggle up on.

The new building is all about promoting independence and giving the young adults their own space, away from the main children’s unit. A fully kitted out kitchen will be a place to eat, drink, prepare snacks and catch up. We need all of the usual items such as a microwave, crockery, cups and glassware and a kettle, as well as some adapted items such as easy-grip cutlery and drinking cups, that the young adults can use to feed themselves.

It’s important we use the space in the unit wisely, and we don’t want large pieces of furniture cluttering up the rooms. A handy table for the young adults is one on wheels, which can be moved around the building and can slide over them when in bed for easy access.

We also need a small table with four chairs, for our care team’s meetings which will take place in the unit at staff handover times, plus two office chairs.

Our building’s fresh new walls will be the perfect blank canvas for some beautiful artwork, to add interest and colour to the communal spaces. Our young adults are all individuals but one thing they all have in common is being from the North East. We would love to have some frames and art prints showing off our beautiful region, in the lounge and corridors.

Additional small furniture items and storage, bedding, lighting and accessories are all required to put the finishing touches to our brand new Young Adults Accommodation