The Therapy Programme

Connect meets the specifications for open (unlocked) rehabilitation and operates on therapeutic community principles.

The environment is a planned and structured one which provides safety and structure for people to develop the internal resources to order their own lives.  Living in a responsive environment raises underlying issues, which can then be resolved.  With the support of therapists, peers are encouraged to identify unmet developmental needs.  The therapeutic process is based on a series of contracts about how these needs will be met.  The community as a whole models appropriate responses and behaviour; peers learn ways of dealing with conflict and of expressing needs.

There is a therapy group every morning and peers can also arrange have individual sessions with therapists outside of these groups.

All peers attend a teaching group at the beginning of their therapy.  This provides a familiarity with TA (Transactional Analysis) language and an opportunity to ask questions in a small group.

Much of the day to day running of the house is carried out by the peers, including cooking, cleaning, shopping and planning for special events such as birthday celebrations.  Peers can be supported by staff where necessary, and are encouraged to develop practical life skills where these may be lacking, including healthy eating, personal hygiene and budgeting – all necessary for independent living.