The Amicus Community, want the children that live in their homes and learn at their school, to feel and know that they are our greatest importance and highest priority. The Amicus Community work with children who have been impacted by the trauma of early environmental factors. These experiences have affected the children’s behaviour which has made living in some of their home environments and attending mainstream schools unsuitable and inappropriate.
They provide a highly supervised and planned environment that integrates residential care and education and is underpinned by a rigorous therapeutic model and understanding. The aim is to help children understand the impact of their pasts and corresponding behaviours and feelings. Enabling them to manage healthier relationships, through which they can achieve the trust and self-esteem essential for their eventual transitions. These transitions from Amicus may involve living in a new family-type setting (which may mean reintegration back into their family home or moving to a sustainable foster placement) and/or attending an alternative suitable educational setting.
As a children’s therapeutic community, Amicus is committed to offering meaningful residential care and education to children through our therapeutic provision. The therapeutic care and education are informed by psychoanalytic and group process/ relations models and is delivered in structured and psychologically informed environments.
To ensure the therapeutic community is delivering the best care they can, they adhere to the Children’s Homes Regulations (2015) and Quality Standards, and the Independent School Standards that are required by their setting. They are regularly and independently inspected and audited by external bodies, to comply with the regulations and standards and to monitor our practice.
Additionally, they are proud to have accredited therapeutic community status through The Royal College of Psychiatrists and they are registered and participate in the Community of Communities network, which means they follow the standards and values set by the Royal College of Psychiatrists. Their everyday work incorporates the therapeutic community’s core values and standards, and their therapeutic model and practice underpin all that they do.
Furthermore, Amicus is committed to the outcomes of the Quality Standards and those identified in children’s Care Plans and EHCPs and in consultation with parents /carers and the local authority and they integrate these outcomes and the framework within their therapeutic practice in their schools and homes.
