Eildon’s Learning Disability Service is ‘Coming Home’ to Kelso

We are expanding our current care services in the Borders, with a much-needed new learning disability service at Poynder Gardens in Kelso.  

We have a long history of working with the Scottish Borders Health and Social Care Partnership supporting people with learning disabilities, as well as providing services for older people, as both a housing and care provider. Our new service at Poynder Gardens is a significant expansion of our learning disability service in Duns, in operation since 1988. 

From September 2024, the service will contribute to the key aims of the Scottish Government’s Coming Home Programme to transform the lives of people with complex learning disabilities by reducing delayed discharge from hospitals and other care settings, as well as reducing the need for people to be offered care placements out with their communities because of a lack of specialist housing and care, closer to their family and support networks.   

Two high quality wheelchair accessible bungalows were completed as part of Phase II of the sympathetic redevelopment of the former Kelso High School which includes our extra care housing service at Poynder Apartments. The bungalows have been specifically adapted to meet the needs of the new tenants, offering bespoke environments to enable the delivery of excellent care and support. 

Amanda Miller, our Director of Community Services commented ‘I am absolutely delighted to share this exciting news and the benefits it will bring to our new tenants and their families. Our first learning disability service was set up at Station Avenue, Duns in 1988 and the positive impact the care and support brings to enable individuals to live as independently as possible and be part of their community, is so important. This is another example of great partnership working between Eildon and the Health and Social Care Partnership, providing people with a learning disability and complex care need to be able to live in their own home in the Scottish Borders, supported by our specialist staff team”

All Poynder Gardens posts will be advertised in the coming weeks, starting with the Learning Disability Manager, which is live now on our website. Check it our here – https://www.eildon.org.uk/careers/vacancies/ 

If you want to be part of this exciting new service and work for a forward-thinking employer, check out the available vacancies and take the opportunity to really make a difference to peoples’ lives.