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Staff

  As well as supporting and developing the potential of our residents, The Almond Villas Group has a strong commitment to training and developing our staff team.

  Managers and staff are trained in NVQ - Level 2 through to Level 5, Diploma in Counselling, Certificate of Mental Illness, Health and Safety matters and other areas relevant to the service, such as Safe Handling of Medicines. Staff members also receive the relevant mandatory training in line with the guidelines of the National Minimum Care Standards.

 On recruitment new staff receive training in the common Induction Standard within the first six months of appointment. In-house training workshops are run regularly for team members.

Management

Marilyn Clarke - Registered Manager/Proprietor

  Marilyn worked in the NHS for 17 years, qualifying as a State Registered Nurse, State Certified Midwife and Registered Mental Nurse. Marilyn went on to work in child, adolescent, family and adult psychiatry as a nursing sister and as a community nursing sister.

 Marilyn is an NVQ assessor and has NVQ Level 4 in Owner Management, NVQ 5 in Strategic Management and holds City and Guilds in Advanced Care Management.

Geoff Clarke - Finance Manager/Proprietor

 Geoff is responsible for managing the financial control systems within the Group, liaison with the Benefits Agencies and Social Services and assists on financial issues and purchasing. Geoff is also involved with therapeutic activities, projects and holidays.

Peter Aldridge - Referrals Manager

 Peter manages the referral and discharge process, liaising with multi-disciplinary teams to achieve the best outcomes for potential referrals. He also has input into staff training and development and individual counselling sessions for service users. He holds a Professional Diploma in Counselling and an NVQ Level 4 in training and development. Peter is also an NLP (Neuro Linguistics Programming) practitioner.

Joanne Birkner - Manager Almond Villas

 In March 2009 Joanne was appointed Manager of Almond Villas. Joanne joined Almond Villas in August 2000 and has worked her way up from Support Worker, Keyworker, through to Community Services Manager and Training Co-ordinator. Joanne gained NVQ 4 in Care in September 2005 and following this worked extremely hard to achieve a First Class Honours degree in English and Literary Studies in 2008.

Julie Ainsworth - Manager Lancaster House / Pritchard Street

 Julie is responsible for the day-to-day management of Lancaster House and Pritchard Street. Julie is an NVQ assessor and holds NVQ level 4 in Care. Julie has also studied mental health - Open College - Level 3 at Burnley College.

Helen Towers – Week-end Co-ordinator

 In March 2009 Helen changed her role within the organisation from her full-time post as Manager of Almond Villas to a part-time post as Week-end Co-ordinator for The Almond Villas Group. Helen will support staff in all three of our homes to resolve problems, offer advice, discuss options, provide 1:1 counselling/support to service users and deal with administrative issues.

Commitment To Quality

  The Almond Villas Group employs a wide range of quality assurance processes. These include:

Investors In People accreditation - since 1996.

Blackburn with Darwen Quality Assured Home.

Internal Quality Audits.

External Inspections (CSCI and Blackburn with Darwen SS Quality Audit).

Health and Safety Inspections.

Health user consultation and feedback.

Staff and customer consultation and feedback.

Health and Safety

  The Almond Villas Group recognises the importance of ensuring that all service users, staff member and visitors are protected by Health and Safety legislation.

  The Group is supported by Peninsular Business Services Ltd who offer advice and monitor our compliance through regular inspections. The Almond Villas Group strives to provide a safe and healthy environment for all who use the premises, as well as ensuring legal compliance with health and safety legislation. There is a designated member of the Almond Villas staff team who acts as a Health and Safety Co-ordinator for the organisation.

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