I've made a referral for your support. What happens now? Expand Whether you've made a referral for someone else or for yourself, the process is the same. The referral will be passed to our Caseworker, who will get in touch directly with the person to be supported and arrange a visit, either at home or at Headway Nottingham's centre. If it's more appropriate for us to arrange this visit through a concerned professional or family member, we can certainly do so - just let us know.
What do you do with our personal information? Expand Headway Nottingham understand that your personal information is precious. We only collect information necessary to perform the functions of the organisation and to make sure we can offer you the best possible experience with us. Please be assured that our data protection/GDPR policies and procedures are up to date, our systems are secure and that all staff members receive regular training to make sure they know exactly how to handle the information you trust us with.
Can Headway Nottingham advocate for me? Expand Staff at Headway Nottingham do not have formal advocacy qualifications, but do have a wealth of experience in offering enabling support to those affected by brain injury. Our caseworker, support staff and the senior management team have a collective 43 years of experience in this area of work! We can support you and your family to access the support you need from a wealth of different services, and make sure those services fully understand how you have been impacted by brain injury. We want to make sure your voice is heard.
Does Headway Nottingham offer carer support? Expand The carers of those people Headway Nottingham support are always able to give us a call for an informal chat or some advice, but we do not currently have any formalised carer support services. If you want to connect with other carers who understand brain injury you can find an online forum here https://healthunlocked.com/headway, or you could find more generalised carer support in your area by contacting TuVida East Midlands https://www.tuvida.org/eastmidlands
Can Headway Nottingham help me with benefits? Expand Our Caseworker can help you to identify which benefits you may be entitled to and support you to make a claim, fill in review paperwork for benefits you already receive, or help you to appeal a decision. Please be aware that we have only one part-time staff member qualified to do this work so there may be times when we are at capacity and cannot take on more benefits work. If this is the case when you need support, we will signpost you on to other organisations that can help.
Does Headway Nottingham offer counselling? Expand Sadly, no. Whilst we would love to be able to offer this, we are not yet able to do so. In the meantime, our team can signpost you to organisations that may be able to help. If this is something you feel you need, you can talk to your GP or you can self-refer into: Nottinghamshire Talking Therapies - Self-refer online here or by calling 0333 188 1060. This service is free of cost and anyone who is registered with a GP throughout Nottingham city and county can access support. Nottingham Counselling Service - Read about Nottingham Counselling Service here
How long will Headway Nottingham help me for? Expand Our service has no time limit. We are proud to say that we will offer support for as long as you need it. Each brain injury is individual and as such, each person attending Headway Nottingham’s centre does so for different reasons. Some people have been supported by Headway Nottingham since its creation in 1996, others get what they need in a few months and move on. There is no “right or wrong” length of time to remain with us here. Our staff will support you to identify and achieve your goals, however long that may take.
Are there any restrictions on who can attend? Expand Headway Nottingham tries to be as inclusive as possible but inevitably, there are some circumstances where attending our day centre may not be suitable. Our centre is fully accessible for wheelchair/mobility aid users and has disabled toilets. However, our staff cannot offer any personal care services. If you require support with toileting, feeding or mobilising you can still come, but we would ask that you are accompanied by a carer who can support you with those tasks. It's also worthy of note that we do not have any manual handling equipment (hoists/rotundas etc) here at the Centre. We operate an “open door” Centre. That is not to say that anyone can gain access to our centre (anyone coming to our door has to be let in by a member of staff), but is a term that refers to our attendees being able to come and go as they wish. If you are likely to want to leave the premises but are not deemed to be safe on your own in the community, you too would be advised to bring a carer with you to offer that 1-1 support. If any person wanting to attend has a history of displaying behaviours that could cause harm to themselves or others, if they are subject to a DoLS order or have been deemed not to have capacity, Headway Nottingham would undertake a risk assessment of those particular circumstances before making a decision about attendance for that individual.
How do I travel to Headway Nottingham? Expand Headway Nottingham is based on Bagnall Road in Old Basford. We're really well serviced with parking and public transport options. Buses There's a bus stop right outside Headway Nottingham. Our closest stop is called 'Christina Avenue' and is accessed on the Yellow number 70 bus. To catch this bus from the city centre you need to go to the 'T3' bus stop outside TKMaxx, Board the number 70, and get off when you reach the 'Christina Avenue' bus stop on Bagnall Road. Trams Our centre is a five minute walk from the Cinderhill tram stop. When traveling to Headway Nottingham from the city centre direction, make sure you board the tram marked 'Phoenix Park' (the tram to Hucknall will not take you to our nearest stop). On leaving the tram, turn right and continue to walk straight along Bagnall Road. Shortly after the mini roundabout, Headway Nottingham will be on your left hand side on the opposite side of the road. Parking Parking is available at Headway Nottingham.
Where does Headway Nottingham get its money from? Expand The cost of running our charity in the financial year ending 2022 was just over £176,000. Just over half of this came from statutory sources, which is money paid to us by the local authorities to provide support to the citizens they assess to require financial assistance to attend for their rehabilitation. We fundraise in order to meet the remaining costs and then fundraise even more to expand and meet the diverse needs of our community. Information about our income and expenditure over the last five years is available from the Charities Commission website, here
I have an enquiry in relation to a Headway charity shop Expand The national charity, Headway - the brain injury association, operate the charity shops to support their national services. Sadly we can't help with any related enquiries. Call Headway - the brain injury association on 0115 9240800 and ask for the Retail Team.
What happens at the rehabilitation centre? Expand Our rehabilitation centre is friendly and welcoming. Tea and coffee are frequently flowing and conversation is buzzing. In one room structured rehabilitation activities take place, including Therapeutic Textiles, Singing for Wellbeing, English and Maths Functional Skills, Creative Writing, Healthy Sexuality and Appropriate Behaviour workshops, accessible indoor bowling and Laughter Yoga. Our Nordic Walking group will also set off from and return to the centre. In another room less structured activities take place, such as individual cognitive exercises, quizzes, music appreciation and brain training games as well as ample opportunity to meet friends and share experiences. The centre is full of laughter and friendship. Although everyone attends as a result of brain injury and often trauma, the emphasis of our work is around supporting each person to have fun, achieve, feel positively about themselves and grow abilities. You won't feel that you have to 'dwell' on the past if you'd rather focus on moving forward.
Is Headway Nottingham a free service? Expand Support from our Caseworker including referral into Headway Nottingham rehabilitation centre, home-visits and additional support that isn't rehabilitation based is completely free of charge. Support with claiming or renewing benefits is also free of charge. In the event that our small team doesn't have the capacity to support you with this directly, we will signpost you to other organisations who can help you, and this is also free of charge. Attendance at our rehabilitation centre does include a fee. This fee is dictated by Social Care so can vary depending on your Local Authority as well as your own level of support need. If you wish to attend the rehabilitation centre your options will be discussed with you during your Caseworker visit.
What services does Headway Nottingham offer? Expand In-centre rehabilitation Headway Nottingham provides a day service exclusively for adults living with disabilities as a result of brain injury. Our centre is a hub of friendship and understanding, providing opportunities for peer support and for individuals to truly 'be themselves' as they are now, regardless of how their disability presents to the outside world. At our centre we provide a structured timetable of rehabilitation workshops, all delivered by tutors or Support Workers with extensive professional experience of brain injury, and all designed to support with different aspects of disability, whether physical, cognitive or behavioural. Headway Nottingham is based in Old Basford with lots of parking and good connections with public transport. Headway Nottingham is an 'Approved Provider of Adult Day Services' for Adult Social Care in both Nottingham city and Nottinghamshire county jurisdictions. Casework Our Caseworker can support you to attend our day service, as well as signpost or refer you to external organisations to support you with specific challenges, eg. housing, substance misuse or mental ill-health. Benefits and welfare support Headway Nottingham supports centre attendees with welfare and benefits applications, reviews and appeals. We are able to offer this support for those with brain injuries who do not attend the centre, however this support can be impacted by staffing limitations. We have a very small team and although we will always try to help you there may be times when this is prohibited by staff availability. If we are unable to help we will signpost you to alternative sources of support.
What will happen at my trial session? Expand You will be warmly welcomed to the centre with a smile and a cup of tea waiting for you! You will spend some time chatting with one of our Support Workers and some of the clients attending that day. If you have chosen to come along because you are interested in a particular rehabilitation workshop, you will be encouraged to engage so you can get a good sense of whether it will be beneficial for you. You certainly won't be forced into taking part in any activities, but it's a good idea to engage as far as you feel able. If you feel you need to, you are welcome to bring someone along with you.
What will happen at my Caseworker visit? Expand Our Caseworker will arrange to meet you at a place that is convenient and feels safe for you to speak openly. A concerned professional, carer or family member is welcome to attend this meeting as long as you are happy for them to do so. During your visit our Caseworker will speak with you about your experiences since your injury and the areas where you feel you need support. Sometimes it's helpful for a family member to be involved in this conversation to help you recall areas of difficulty or significant issues that may have become a challenge post-injury. We will also ask you a set of structured questions which are designed to help us assess what support you require. Our Caseworker will discuss your options with you. If you choose to try our rehabilitation centre you will be offered a free trial session to allow you to get a feel for the service and support we offer. All information you share with us will be kept completely confidential.