Our Vision
Every child and young person lives in a safe, supportive and caring environment and is provided with the right tools required for each individual to thrive and prosper.
About Lifestyles
Based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Built around the child. Backed by a multi-disciplinary clinical team and a vastly experienced board.
Lifestyles is a forward-thinking and innovative service which aims to provide a high level, professional residential service for children and young people in care.
Our objective is to overcome the obstacles and challenges that our children and young people face — by providing the highest quality of care and support for children and young people who find themselves in crisis and unable to live at home at this time.
We employ a highly skilled staff team — qualified and experienced in the care sector, supported and led by a highly qualified, well-trained and experienced management team.
Complementing our strong in-house team, we have longstanding relationships with local high quality organisations such as Cirrus I.T Systems, who developed and manage our secure I.T portal, our HR partners Beyond HR who advise, guide and support with all HR matters, MDE Accountancy who manage our payroll functions and back office Sage system, Mcilveen Howard who compile our yearly accounts with our team, Carson McDowell LLP who provide legal advice and guidance where required, Ulster Bank who support us with our banking requirements and McGrady Insurance who broker both our fleet and range of commercial insurances.
At Lifestyles, we value and appreciate the support of local service providers and always seek to strengthen relationships that have been forged and provide our organisation with consistent and continuous premium quality services.
What drives us
Every child and young person lives in a safe, supportive and caring environment and is provided with the right tools required for each individual to thrive and prosper.
To empower each child and young person within our care to work towards their own goals and gain a sense of purpose, fulfilment and achievement. We aim to provide the highest standards and quality of care, working diligently with each individual towards positive outcomes.
Multi-disciplinary support
Our staff and management are supported by a multi-disciplinary team of Health and Care Professionals. This structure underpins every care plan, every individual crisis support plan, every risk assessment and every placement decision — we place the child's needs at the core of everything we do.
Meet our peopleClinical Psychologist
Child Psychotherapist
Family Therapists
Social Workers
Occupational Therapist
Play Therapist
Trauma Specialist
Safeguarding Consultant
Our Values
Striving towards positive outcomes for our children and young people. Working collaboratively with the child on personal and social development. Nurturing their skills, values, interests and personalities.
Actively listening to each child. Encouraging feedback and input into their care and programme, ensuring the child feels heard, respected, valued and cared for. Practising collaborative working and connecting with others involved in the young person's journey.
Ensuring at all times the quality of care, transparency of reporting and a fully compliant organisation. Acting with honesty and integrity at all times and respecting the views, wishes, opinions, feedback and input of others.
Striving to ensure that all children are included. Importantly, that children and young people feel included, supported, safe and cared for. No child or young person should feel marginalised or isolated as a result of their background, race, religion, ethnicity, disability, sexuality, nationality or for any other reason.
Creating an organisational culture that strives to improve our practice every day, that is proactive with strategy and forward planning, that is flexible with its approach to care and that is driven by energetic, passionate and skilled leadership.
Finding the right people for the right roles — equally passionate, motivated and driven to work within a forward-thinking, fast-paced and continuously developing organisation. Striving to offer sector-leading training and ongoing professional development.
Governance
Our Board meets on a quarterly basis and has oversight of operations and all aspects of organisational governance. The Board is supported by a Board Advisory Committee — they support us with advice, guidance and with decision making.
The Lifestyles STEPS Therapeutic Model has been co-created with the team by Patrick Tomlinson, Organisational Development Consultant & Trauma Specialist on our Board Advisory Committee — an international authority on trauma- and attachment-informed residential care who has worked across Australia, Japan, the UK, Ireland, Romania, the USA, India and Portugal.
Health and Social Care Trust commissioners and social workers can get in touch directly to discuss referrals or our specialist intervention programme.