BOOST & BOOST Plus
Boost in a unique service that ‘Boosts’ life chances and living skills for Portsmouth looked after children and young care leavers. We work with young people from the age of 16 up to the age of 25. Referrals come from the Portsmouth social care services ‘Through care’ team. Alongside receiving support on issues like housing, peer pressures, benefits and employment or college, Boost young people complete a work book to independence.
“My views on Boost Plus are that they are very helpful, trustworthy, caring and reliable”
Boost works with young people from the age of 16 – 25 that are soon to or have left the care of the Local Authority. The service supports them to ‘boost’ their independence and life skills. Referrals for the service come from Portsmouth City Council.
Each young person is allocated a dedicated keyworker who completes an assessment of their needs and then together they will create a support plan. Alongside this, Boost use a Training in Personal Independence workbook which covers Money, Living Skills, Health and Wellbeing, Housing and Community and Employment and Training. Each young person will then be supported to complete all relevant areas of the workbook. The Boost Service has had their workbook accredited through City of Portsmouth College so that the young people can gain a City & Guilds award, in recognition of their hard work.
An important part of the Boost work is about making sure the young people feel they have someone they can turn to in times of need, who will not judge them for any mistakes, but simply support them on making different choices and be there for them. Boost supports young people in all areas of their lives with the hope that with a bit of guidance they will realise their potential. We all need someone and for these young people, Boost is their ‘someone’ and helps them become confident adults that are able to maintain their home and have a sense of self-worth.
BOOST PATHWAY
The BOOST Pathway has been in operation since 2012. BOOST aims to improve the life chances and outcomes of care experienced young people; aged 16 to 25 years old. The service is run in partnership with Portsmouth Social Care’s Through Care Team and Portsmouth City Council’s Housing Department. The Pathway supports young people to learn the skills necessary to manage a tenancy so that they can live independently.
The Pathway is made up of three unique services: BOOST, TASLYP (Temporary Accommodation Support for Looked After Young People AKA The Training Flat) and BOOST+ which is a supported housing scheme.
Over the past year, 52 young people have been supported in the BOOST Pathway.
Case study
“Boost has been a massive part of my young adult journey. I spent several years lost in my own bubble but with Boost support it made me realise a way out and help put my life back on track. The best thing about Boost is how it has helped me develop my independent living skills.
Through my keyworker sessions I`ve learned how to declutter my home and create a more organised and stress-free living environment. I`ve also attended events from the Robert centre independently which has helped me build up my confidence and I particularly loved trying out new activities like horse riding and Taste Great sessions.
Another highlight for me has been getting out into nature and exploring the beautiful forest near my home. I`m loving nature!
With a newfound confidence I am ready to start securing my future goals and I plan to return to work and follow my dreams of becoming a phlebotomist. “
Temporary Accommodation Service for Looked After Young People (TASLYP)
TASLYP has a self-contained training flat owned by PCC, where care experienced young people have the opportunity to really taste what it means to live independently. The young people stay in the flat for 6 weeks, with support from their Boost keyworker. The young person has at least 3 visits per week to work on life skills and the Training and Personal Independence Workbook.
Young people are expected to pay a small service charge, gas, electricity and they also need to budget for their weekly food. This is an excellent way for young people to learn responsibilities and what is meant by being a good tenant.
The benefit of the TASLYP flat is that it enables the young person to gain new skills, confidence and to have a better idea about the challenges of living on their own and being a tenant. The experience of living in the TASLYP flat demonstrates areas where the young person still needs support in order to be better prepared for when they leave care. There have been 8 young people that took advantage of this opportunity over the last year.
“The training flat was awesome. I loved the support!”
BOOST Plus
The Boost Plus Service is a supported housing scheme using Portsmouth City Council sublets and is designed to meet the needs of young people leaving care. The young person has intensive support from their keyworker that will slowly start to reduce, once the young person, and all the professionals involved, agree that the young person has the necessary skills they need to manage without such intensive support. The tenancy agreement between the young person and The Roberts Centre will then be signed over to the young person and Portsmouth City Council, so that the young person is then living independently.
This service is extremely vital for young people to succeed in managing their own tenancy and be secure in their future housing. The service embeds skills that young people will be able to carry all the way through their adult life and reduce the risks of some of the most vulnerable people becoming street homeless. With a safe and secure home, young people have a better chance of achieving their potential and building on their aspirations.