The aim of the Clare Lodge behaviour support programme is to help young people regulate their own behaviour and be rewarded for the efforts they make in trying to do this through building relationships, attending education, taking part in activities and the routines of the home. This should be done in a supportive, nurturing and trauma informed way. It should not be punitive. It is important that staff keep in mind the experiences that the young people who come to Clare Lodge have had and that they have developed mechanisms to cope with these.

Clare Lodge is a therapeutic environment, and we work in line with the Attachment, Self-Regulation and Competency Treatment Framework (ARC). Whether the young person receives interventions through Education staff, Health staff, Care staff or any partnerships groups, all are delivered under the therapeutic model.

The purpose of this programme is to positively support young people with behaviour, using the ARC framework, and integrating a trauma informed approach to managing behaviour.

The system is aimed at motivating, supporting, and promoting positive interactions between young people and between young people and all staff in the home. The language should be positive, and it should describe what we want them to achieve or something we want them to do rather than what we do not want them to do.

This programme replaces previous programmes which used points and levels, with sanctions placed against behaviour as a punishment.

This programme will set out clear expectations consequences and restorative options as part of supporting the young people to reflect and promote change in their behaviour.

The main areas of the Behaviour Support Programme are: