Route One

The Route 1 project provides supported accommodation for fifty three men and women with mental health difficulties.

The project is able to meet a variety of support needs through its varied accommodation which includes a high support house, women only house, shared house, self contained studio flats and its one, two or three-bedroomed flats. It works closely in partnership with the statutory mental health services in Brighton and Hove.

Sharon Munnings, operational manager of the Route One project says,

“The main client group is mental health but we do also work with people who have substance misuse issues, although that would not be the reason that we would accept someone into the project, they would need to have a recognised mental health issue as well, it would not just be substance misuse."

"The way we work with clients is to pursue the aim for them to live more independently, or completely independently in the future, so part of the work we do is looking at what the clients needs are, looking at their mental health, looking at the things that they are able to do, so we are very much focussed on their health and well being. Rather than just working on a traditional model of support planning we are looking at more holistic support, looking at nutrition, looking at peer support, linking them in with other agencies and also with each other. We arrange regular group activities with a view to all the clients and all the parts of the service coming together.”

In early 2007, the Route 1 Project incorporated the old Gateway Project as part of a new, more focused service.