Kairos community: looking forwards

There is a justifiable sense of satisfaction and relief across Kairos that Bethwin, Linden Grove, Move-on and the Garden Day Programme have worked tirelessly and professionally (and with no small degree of common sense) to stay open and provide invaluable service to homeless people with addiction related issues. In the case of Aftercare, the team is delighted that their planned reopening has gone so smoothly and with such enthusiastic uptake of pre-Covid-19 participants who waited patiently for the programme to restart.

I am also pleased to report the following:

• NHS Covid-19 tests are available now (follow this link). Two tests were carried out last week – one at Bethwin Care Home and one Move-on worker – and both results were negative.
• All workers will be back to work next week, including two who were shielded.
• There is a managers meeting next Wednesday (15 July), which will give us an opportunity to reflect on the experiences of the past few months, understand the lessons learned, plan and make decisions for the future.
• In order to help measure the impact of the pandemic on Kairos community, we have asked all staff to fill out an evaluation questionnaire. All residents of Move-on houses have also been asked to respond to a questionnaire designed for them. I am very pleased with the response so far.
• Following a meeting during the week, Kairos+ counselling service is looking to expand its services. Hopefully, this will be done by decentralising the service previously based at Linden Grove and providing services in north London and at Elm Grove. It is hoped that, as a result of a current staff recruitment drive, some 35 Move-on residents will soon be benefiting from weekly counselling sessions.

Last word: please stay safe, don’t take chances and thank you all.