We are a growing Shared Lives Scheme building an innovative service across Dudley and Wolverhampton
14/11/2025
šØ Dudley Residents ā This Oneās for You! šØ
Are you looking for a rewarding job that lets you work from home AND make a real difference in someoneās life?
Join the incredible world of Shared Lives š
Weāre on the lookout for compassionate people in Dudley to become Shared Lives carers ā offering support, stability, and friendship to care-experienced young people with learning disabilities, autism, or mental health challenges.
ā Work from home
ā Flexible and fulfilling
ā Change lives ā including your own
You donāt need formal qualifications ā just a big heart and a safe, welcoming home. Full training and support provided.
š Ready to make a difference? Drop us a message or visit our website to learn more.
š£ļø Positive Conversations Around Post-18 Support
Today we hosted an information session for foster carers interested in learning more about Shared Lives as a potential option for supporting young people beyond the age of 18.
It was a productive and engaging session, with thoughtful discussion around how Shared Lives can offer continuity and a supportive environment during the transition to adulthood. The shared experiences and questions raised highlighted a strong interest in exploring new ways to provide a smooth transition, resulting in meaningful, person-centred support.
Thank you to everyone who attended and contributed. We look forward to continuing the conversation and supporting carers in exploring Shared Lives further.
12/11/2025
š Panel Success! š
š We're really pleased to welcome another newly approved Shared Lives Carer to our network following this week's Independent Panel.
Simon will be supporting a young person as they transition from leaving care into adulthoodāproviding a stable, nurturing home and the kind of personalised support that makes Shared Lives so special.
A huge thank you to everyone involved in the panel process and to Simon for choosing to make a difference in a young personās life.
11/11/2025
Weāre hosting an informal drop-in session at our Stourbridge office next Thursday, 13th November from 9.30a.m, to talk about Shared Lives as an option for young people leaving care at 18.
We know that many foster carers are keen to understand the transition from fostering to adulthood but can receive limited or unclear information about the route into Shared Lives.
Youāll have the chance to speak with our team and other foster carers, learn more about Shared Lives, and explore the different routes into adult social care.
If you are interested in joining, please drop a comment below, or send an email to sharedlives@cvt.org.uk
10/11/2025
š§ Have you supported someone through their mental health journey?
We are looking to recruit Carers who understand the importance of trust, patience, and connection in supporting people with mental health needs.
š If you have prior work experience or qualification in areas of mental health or complex care and support need, we want to hear from you!
You can use your skills to offer support in a family environment, enabling a safe, stable and empowering future.
š¬ Message us to find out how to become a Shared Lives carer.
07/11/2025
It's a feel good Friday, and to wrap up the week, we have our very own Katie, sharing her story about her journey into Shared Lives...
06/11/2025
šŖ Diwali Tea with Our Shared Lives Carers
We had a lovely morning catching up over tea and samosas to mark a belated Diwali celebration with our Shared Lives Carers.
It was a relaxed and enjoyable way to connect, share stories, and appreciate the everyday contributions our carers make.
Over the last few months, we've been visiting our communities across the country, learning from the people we support, team members, Trustees and project partners.
Our aim? To discover and celebrate how our Charity is caring for the environment, creating social good, and leading with strong governance - all through the everyday actions of our communities.
Itās ESG in Action, and itās happening all around us.
Over the next eight months, weāll be sharing stories, videos and case studies that show ESG in Action, inspired by the work of people we support and our brilliant team.
Sharing these stories brings our ESG statement to life, and is a key part of our Brilliant Future strategy. This strategy puts sustainability, inclusion and resilience at the heart of everything we do.
Itās our way of making sure our communities continue to thrive, our values stay strong, and our organisation remains responsive and ready for whatever the future holds.
This isnāt new for us. Our mission has always been rooted in ESG values: connecting people with nature, promoting wellbeing and making a difference beyond our communities, while building a Charity thatās ready for the future.
Weāre proud of the way our communities care for the planet, each other, and themselves, and we canāt wait to show you how their everyday actions are creating a brilliant future.
Follow along and be inspired ļæ½. Our first month (November) will be focussed on Health and Wellbeing, with amazing stories from people like Simon, who lives in Botton Village and has been working as a co-researcher on a health and nutrition project at Teesside University.
Over the last few months, we've been visiting our communities across the country, learning from the people we support, team members, Trustees and project partners.
Our aim? To discover and celebrate how our Charity is caring for the environment, creating social good, and leading with strong governance - all through the everyday actions of our communities.
Itās ESG in Action, and itās happening all around us.
Over the next eight months, weāll be sharing stories, videos and case studies that show ESG in Action, inspired by the work of people we support and our brilliant team.
Sharing these stories brings our ESG statement to life, and is a key part of our Brilliant Future strategy. This strategy puts sustainability, inclusion and resilience at the heart of everything we do.
Itās our way of making sure our communities continue to thrive, our values stay strong, and our organisation remains responsive and ready for whatever the future holds.
This isnāt new for us. Our mission has always been rooted in ESG values: connecting people with nature, promoting wellbeing and making a difference beyond our communities, while building a Charity thatās ready for the future.
Weāre proud of the way our communities care for the planet, each other, and themselves, and we canāt wait to show you how their everyday actions are creating a brilliant future.
Follow along and be inspired ļæ½. Our first month (November) will be focussed on Health and Wellbeing, with amazing stories from people like Simon, who lives in Botton Village and has been working as a co-researcher on a health and nutrition project at Teesside University.
04/11/2025
š Pumpkin Power! Jess Gets Creative for Halloween šØ
This Halloween, Jess brought some serious carving skills to the table with her beautifully crafted pumpkin designs! Itās always inspiring to see how small seasonal traditions like pumpkin carving can spark joy, expression, and a sense of community. Well done, Jess ā your designs were a real treat! šš§”
03/11/2025
Celebrating National Care Leaversā Month ā November 2025
This November, weāre proud to support National Care Leaversā Monthāa time to reflect on the journeys of young people who have experienced care and to shine a light on the challenges they face as they transition into adulthood.
The theme this year, āRising as Me: Overcoming challenges, transforming, and finding your identity,ā encourages us to recognise the resilience, growth, and individuality of care leavers.
Throughout the month, we will be highlighting the Shared Lives for Young People Leaving Care programme. This initiative is designed to expand opportunities for care-experienced young peopleāespecially those with learning disabilities, autism, or mental health needsāby offering a supportive, family-based alternative to traditional care settings. Our goal is to make Shared Lives the preferred choice for those seeking stability, connection, and a sense of belonging.
Gracieās story shows how Shared Lives helps young people leaving care find freedom, confidence and a sense of belonging.
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Contact The Practice
Send a message to Camphill Village Trust Shared Lives:
As a starting point, Shared Lives can be described as a little bit like āfoster care for adults who have additional and/or complex needsāā¦. but itās so much more than that, as we enable the person to make their own choices in life, take control and maximise their independence. The person is carefully matched to stay with specially trained Shared Lives Carers who provide individual support to develop practical skills, encourage new social networks, build self-esteem and lead the same ordinary life at the heart of the community just like you and me. When someone comes to stay with the Shared Lives Carer(s) on either a Live-In, Short-Break or Day-Care basis, we call this an āArrangementā. There is a maximum of up to three people living/staying within a household at any one time.
In Shared Lives, the goal is for everyone to feel a sense of belonging, have opportunity to be valued as part of family life and be actively involved with the local community. We support anybody from the age of 18 years old, though we will start preparatory work with young adults who are making the transition to Adult Services. Whilst Shared Lives is traditionally a service for people with learning disabilities, the team have experience of setting up Arrangements for people with mental ill health, early-on-set dementia, hospital discharges, older people, physical disabilities, people on the Autistic Spectrum and those with other complex support needs.
Currently, there are approximately 12,000 adults being supported by around 9,000 Carers in Shared Lives Arrangements across England and the sector has grown by 30% over the last few years. When living in a Shared Lives Arrangement, people are known to lead longer, healthier and happier lives, which provides a real alternative to more traditional settings such as hospital or residential care. 96% of all Shared Lives Schemes inspected by the Care Quality Commission are rated as Good or Outstanding and the model has the lowest amount of Safeguarding incidents in comparison to all other forms of Adult Social Care. On average, placing someone in a Shared Lives Arrangement, can save Local Authorities/NHS up to Ā£26K annually, in comparison to other forms of long-term care.
To become a Shared Lives Carer, you donāt need any qualifications or experience of working in the care industry (though it can help), you just need the right values, dedicationā¦and of course a spare room!!! You should be over 21 years of age, be able to read and write English and be committed to undertaking training and supervision for the continued development of your role. Shared Lives Carers are not paid by the hour, there is no āclocking on and clocking offā when you are supporting someone from within your own home, but itās a hugely rewarding role!!! Shared Lives Carers have self-employed status and qualify for tax relief from HMRC. You are paid according to the level of support you provide, which can sometimes include personal care, often between Ā£370-Ā£560 per week. You can even continue with your current employment and be a Shared Lives Carer at the same time.
You will need to complete an Enhanced DBS Check, self-declaration of health, as well as provide employer/personal references and relevant insurance cover. The Scheme worker will then write an assessment report that will include your life history, employment career and identify your values and motivations for wanting to become a Carer. We will provide you with a comprehensive Induction programme, where groups discussions will focus on roles and responsibilities, ethical dilemmas, safeguarding and communication skills, and medication administration etc. An Independent Panel made up of local people with an interest in Shared Lives will interview you and then approve your status as a Carer. From start to finish, the whole process takes between 3-6 months.
When we match someone to stay with a Shared Lives Carer, we sometimes have to consider, but not always necessarily so, cultural/religious differences, age, gender, complexity of support needs, daily routines, skillset and experience of the Shared Lives Carer, home location, pets, interests and extended family/social networks. You may have to wait a little while whilst we find the right match, as we are not in the business of putting square pegs in round holes. We are sure you appreciate that when we bring people together, we need to check everybody is happy first, as this underpins the longevity and success of each Arrangement. Being part of a wider charity means there is also opportunity to access all the activities at our Stourbridge Community as well as connect to an already established network of support.
If you are interested in finding out more about becoming a Carer with CVT Shared Lives, then visit our website at: www.cvt.org.uk/sharedlives and give us a call on 01384 441 505 or follow us on twitter: @CVTSharedLives
