Merton Mencap

Providing support and services for children, young people and adults with a learning disability and their family carers in the London Borough of Merton

Events

Tuesday 8 October 2024, 10am to 12pm (Zoom meeting)

With Timon Palmer, Clinical Nurse Specialist, Acute Learning Disabilities Liaison Team, St George’s Hospital, Dara Shortall, Lead Nurse, Learning Disabilities and Autism, St Helier Hospital, Vanessa Ashman, Lead Nurse/ Psychotherapist and Padraic Costello, Lead Nurse, Merton Integrated Learning Disability Team

Meet Timon, who leads the Acute Learning Disabilities Liaison Team at St George’s Hospital and Dara who leads the Learning Disabilities and Autism Team at St Helier Hospital.

If your cared for relative needs to attend St George’s or St Helier Hospital as an in-patient or out- patient, Timon and Dara’s teams will make sure they receive the best service possible.

Find out how you can access the teams, how they can support you to plan for your relative’s admission, treatment and discharge, plus outpatient appointments too. Hear about the ‘Hospital Passport’ for people with learning disabilities, which provides hospital staff with important information such as ‘things you must know about me’, ‘things that are important to me’ and ‘my likes and dislikes’.

Plus, Vanessa and Padraic will be joining to talk about their roles as community nurses in Merton’s Integrated Learning Disabilities Team, and how they support people to ensure their health care needs are met. Register now to secure your place!

Friday 15 November 2024, 10am to 12pm (Zoom meeting)

With Elizabeth Fitzpatrick, Assistant Director of Education and Karla Finikin, Head of SENDIS (SEN and Disabilities Integrated Service)

A great opportunity to hear the latest information from senior officers in Merton and ask your questions. Register now to secure your place!

Thursday 14 November 2024, 10am to 12pm (in person meeting)
and 6pm to 7.30pm online (Zoom)

With Clare Devane, Merton’s Head of Service, Transformation Programmes, Allison Jones, Head of Early Years, Family Wellbeing and Early Help, Christina Pace, Director for Strategy, Commissioning and Partnerships and Jo Ross, Head of Family Support and Safeguarding
Children, Lifelong Learning and Families Department

Following the first stage of Merton’s Short Breaks Consultation during July and September, Clare, Allison, Christina and Jo, will be presenting Merton’s proposals for the Short Breaks offer from September 2025. Short breaks are part of a range of services that support children and young people with disabilities, and their families. They are hugely beneficial as they give children and young people the chance to take part in fun activities and develop new interests, relationships, and greater independence, whilst at the same time giving parents and carers a break from their caring responsibilities. They can happen in the evening, after school, weekends, school holidays or overnight depending on the needs of your child.

This is your chance to tell Merton what you think of the proposals and have your say to improve this valuable and much needed service for you and other SEND children, young people and their families. Your views will help inform Merton’s short breaks offer from September 2025 onwards, so don’t miss this opportunity to get your voice heard! Book your place now! Secure your place now!

In person meeting: The Chaucer Centre, Canterbury Road, Morden, SM4 6PX Email: kf [dot] admin [at] mertonmencap [dot] org [dot] uk or telephone 020 3963 0597/07929 670645 to book a place

Online meeting: Register in advance here. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Friday 18 October, 10am to 12pm (in person meeting)

With Henrietta Dewsnap, Service Manager for Merton CAMHS, Kenneth Wong, Clinical Manager for Merton CAMHS, Vikki Cameron, Assistant Head of Children’s Services (Merton), SW London Integrated Care System and Billie Kerr, Relationship Manager for SW London, Kooth

Hear about the role of the Merton CAMHS Team and an update on the neurodevelopmental pathway for diagnostic assessment of autism/ADHD in Merton. The session will also cover information about the referral process, how referrals are screened, the assessment processes, wait times, post diagnostic support and any future plans. Plus, Billie will be joining the session to talk about Kooth, an online counselling and emotional well-being platform for children and young people aged 10-25, which includes a free, anonymous chat service, offering a safe space to talk with a team of mental health professionals. Come along and ask your questions. Book now! The Chaucer Centre (Combi Room), Canterbury Road, Morden, SM4 6PX.

CAMHS Merton October 2024 slidesDownload

Tuesday 24 September 2024, 10am to 12pm (in person meeting)

With Karla Finikin, Head of SENDIS, Samantha Smart, SEN Manager, Post 16 Team, SENDIS (SEN and Disabilities Integrated Service), Gill Moore, Merton’s Head of Integrated Learning Disabilities Service, Nick Chisnall, Service Manager, Integrated Learning Disabilities Team and Transition Service and Lorraine Falconer, Interim Team Manager, Integrated Learning Disability and Transitions Team

Our speakers will be talking through the whole process of PfA and transition so you are clear about what should happen, when it should happen, where responsibilities lie at different stages of transition and the support provided to make the process as seamless as possible for families.

It’s also a great opportunity to hear an update about the work that is happening within SENDIS and Adult Social Care around improving the PfA and transition journey to make it a better experience for families.

The Chaucer Centre (Combi Room), Canterbury Road, Morden, SM4 6PX Joint Merton Parent Carer Forum and Adults First session

PfA and Transitions slidesDownload

Tuesday 16 July 2024, 10am to 12pm (Zoom meeting)

With Gill Moore, Head of Integrated Learning Disabilities Service, Nick Chisnall, Service Manager, Integrated Learning Disabilities Team and Transition Service, Andy Ottaway-Searle, Head of Direct Provision, and Angela Wardell, Supported Living Service Manager

Our speakers at this session will be providing an overview of the range of different housing options available in Merton for adults with learning disabilities and autism, such as supported living, registered care homes, extra care housing and shared lives. They will be explaining the process a family would need to go through from day 1 when they decide they would like to look at housing options for their cared for family member. So a step by step guide of the process, how to apply, what happens next, the support the LD team offer in this process, who decides on the most appropriate provision and how, who makes the final decision, moving in, managing costs like rent and any support required, plus the carers involvement in the process and their rights to be involved in decisions about their loved ones care once they move in to their new home.

There will be time for questions too, so register now to secure your place!

Different Housing Options PresentationDownload
Merton Shared Lives Scheme prersentationDownload
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