Introduction to the home
River Lea is based in the outskirts of Luton in a quiet residential area, nearby there are a lot of exciting activities such as an outdoor cinema and crazy golf. It provides three spacious bedrooms for young people with Learning Difficulties. The home provides a wonderful balance of quiet spaces and room for activities easily adapted to individuals needs. The large garden is paired with a lovely seating area and room for sunflower growing competitions.
River Lea House is a three bedded children’s home, it is a large detached bungalow in a residential area. There are homes either side of the house and behind a school field. There are five bedrooms, three bedrooms for the young people and two which are used as staff bedrooms. Two of the children’s bedrooms are on the ground floor, both bedrooms upstairs have an en-suite one of which is for a young person the other is the staff bedroom and also has the duel use as an office. To the rear of the home there is a large open plan kitchen/living area, overlooking the garden with patio doors leading to the large patio and garden area. There is also a smaller lounge at the front of the house for people to utilise should they want some privacy. There is a ground floor bathroom which has a shower, bath, toilet and sink.
Feedback from the children
When child A came to River Lea there were concerns about their level of aggression due to incidents at home. Child A has Autism and ADHD traits so when they arrived we immediately set boundaries and structure. Child A has not shown any aggression, they may try and push the boundaries from time to time but with clear communication and boundaries set we have experienced nothing but a delightful young person with a great sense of humour. We have been working closely with the young persons family to continue to develop that relationship with the plan that they will return home.
Child A states: ‘I like the staff because they are chill, they don’t go all extreme. They let me watch 12 ratings (I’m 13) but my old place didn’t. ‘The house is calm, it’s nice, it’s massive. I love the two TV rooms and having my own bathroom’.
