Some people describe Shared Lives as being 'like fostering for adults'.

While there are some similarities, there is so much more to the scheme. People who need support can choose to use Shared Lives for full time care, respite breaks, or just short caring sessions with day support to go shopping, or on days out. Adults with learning disabilities, physical disabilities, older people and/or mental health needs are matched with carers and their families, to live in their home or to spend time together in the carer's home or in the community, doing the things they enjoy together.

Shared Lives is an opportunity for people who need support to become part of a family.

The scheme enables people to live in or be a part of a family environment, allowing them to become part of a community, where they can maintain existing friendships and develop new ones. They get support to gain the confidence and skills to become as independent as possible and they can see their own family and friends as much as they want.

People who use Bury Shared Lives tell us regularly about the surprising and positive changes they experience; they feel settled, valued and a sense of belonging, sometimes for the first time in their lives. It's a unique way for people to get support to live their best life.

Who can use Shared Lives?

The scheme is open to any adult over 18, once a social worker has referred them to us. If you don't have a social worker, we can help you to get in touch with one. Click here to contact us now. 

How does Shared Lives work?

The type of placement depends on the needs of the person using the scheme, so it means that it can be completely flexible to those who need it. This also means there are always countless different opportunities available for Shared Lives carers, whatever your existing commitments. 

Download our printable brochure here.

You're welcome to call us for a chat (you'll find our number here), or contact us to find out more about the role of a Shared Lives carer, or to talk about what type of support would suit you best. 

To enquire about getting support from Shared Lives, click here.

To enquire about becoming a Shared Lives carer, click here.

You can also find out more about being a carer here.

What different types of placements are there?

• Long term/permanent placements - people live in the carer's home on a long-term basis.*

• Short term respite breaks - for anything from one night to a few weeks at a time. It could be a 'one-off' or a planned, regular break.*

• Emergency respite care - immediate support whenever it's needed, for a family or a personal crisis, for example.*

• Daytime support - this involves the carer and the person they are supporting spending time together, either in the carer's home or out in the community doing things that are important to them. 

*The person being supported would have their own bedroom in the house.

How do I know that using the scheme is a safe option for me to use?

Bury Shared Lives scheme is registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC), who carry out regular inspections to make sure all our arrangements are being carried out safely. The CQC also check that carers and Bury Shared Lives scheme are taking into account what people who use the service want in the placement and that they are meeting the terms of their contracts. You can read our latest CQC report here.

Why should I use Bury Shared Lives?

We believe that we all have the right to an ordinary life.

Shared Lives is completely about you, your needs, your goals and your wishes, not about what someone else thinks you should have. Even if you are already getting support from social care, you can still use us as well, to give you even more choice about how you live your life in a 'normal' rather than a 'special' way. 

You might like to have a lot of one to one support with someone you know well, or want to live with a family. You might want to be sure you can be a part of a community, follow your religious beliefs or have support to make friendships and connections that are important to you. Because we spend a lot of time matching you with a carer who shares your beliefs and interests, Shared Lives makes all of these things possible and easy for you to do.

Bury Shared Lives has its own committee, run by people who use the service, for the people who use the service. The Shared Lives Committee is is a group of people who meet up to talk about how the scheme should be run. They also tell us what they think about things like our website and they help us to plan events. Below is a picture of some of the committee members at a meeting in July 2022. You can read more about the committee here. 

I want to know more about using Bury Shared Lives

You can find out more from our Easy Reads here and watch Chayim's video (below) about what it's like to use Bury Shared Lives.

To read the Bliss family's account of their matching process with Sarisa, and to hear how Sarisa found it too, click here.

Click here to read our stories about people who are already using the scheme. If you'd like to talk to someone, ring us on the number here or fill in our contact form here.

I want to know more about becoming a Bury Shared Lives Carer

If you are a Bury resident, please have a look at our carer pages here, where you can find information about training, support, how to apply and what it means to be a carer with us. Unfortunately we are not able to take carers from outside of Bury. 

Click here to go back to the main Bury Shared Lives page.