Making a house a home...

We don't just provide residential accommodation for young people with problems that make normal life impossible – we provide a home; somewhere to feel safe and supported with a 'family' that understands and encourages.

How do we do it? Well, for a start, we only use properties that are conducive to creating a family feel; 3 – 5 bed units set in beautiful countryside. And we choose our team members with as much care as well – their wealth of experience and mix of approaches means our residents can always turn to someone they can trust and rely on.

What's more, the fact that our staff tend to stick around for years (not months or weeks) means that our young people often feel happy to stick around too. We've even been known to lay on a few Sunday lunches for ex-residents who still see Step-A-Side as their childhood home.

But, like all good family homes, structure and stimulation are a big part of our success as well. We've forged lasting relationships with local schools (both mainstream and specialist), and have access to a wide range of local activities – from quad biking and horse riding to tenpin bowling. Perhaps most of all we try to make Step-A-Side the sort of place that we'd like to have stayed at if, as young people, we'd had problems at home

Our Aims

To provide a stable, safe environment for young people whose needs or behaviour make normal
family life impossible.

To continually assess our young peoples needs to ensure we identify their social, educational
and emotional needs.

To build our young peoples' self-esteem and sense of respect.

To manage challenging behaviour with tolerance, understanding and non-punitive methods.

To encourage our young people to become active and welcomed members of the community, making
the most of local facilities and amenities.

To work closely with the placing authorities in order to develop the most appropriate tailor-made care
plans for each individual