01282 4545 76

Kaleidoscope Assessment Services has been operating residential services for children and young people for over ten years, and Finsley House is a private residential family centre which was opened by Kaleidoscope Assessment Services (Kaleidoscope from henceforth) in 2012. 

The main purpose of the centre is to provide families with accommodation together with other services and facilities, in an environment where children can be safeguarded, whilst their parents’ capacity to respond to and meet children’s needs and safeguard their welfare are developed and assessed. Each parent’s capabilities and capacities are monitored and assessed throughout their placement, and form the basis of the comprehensive evidence-based assessments which are completed throughout the placement.

With a focus on Child Protection and the needs of children, our aim is to provide evidence-based assessments of parents and caregivers, through direct observations, and direct work and monitoring, whilst also supporting the family.

Kaleidoscope provides support for parents and their children 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The support afforded to the family is with the aim of empowering parents to recognise areas for development, and improve their parenting skills in order that they can care for their children safely and without detriment to their child’s welfare.

We believe that every person has the right to be treated with respect and expect everyone at Kaleidoscope to behave in a way that does not discriminate against others. Kaleidoscope’s policy is that all families and staff are provided with equality of opportunity regardless of race, age, sex, sexuality, ethnicity, religious belief, disability, or health status.

We aim to meet the needs of parents of all races, cultures, disabilities, sexualities, and religious beliefs, and endeavour to employ a diverse staff team to reflect the needs and diverse backgrounds of the families we support. We celebrate all major religious festivals and help parents gain knowledge about their own and other’s cultures and religions. We request information about a family’s cultural and religious needs at the point of referral, and ensure that these are taken into account when planning their assessment.

Unfortunately, due to the layout of the building which extends over two floors, Finsley House is unable to accept referrals for families with physical disabilities that impact their mobility and / or their ability to manoeuvre stairs, as we are unable to accommodate a lift facility, due to the limited space within the building.

Visitors with a physical or mobility disability who are able to climb a maximum of one step with little assistance will be able to access the building, and have use of a room on the ground floor.

Finsley House is located in a peaceful residential area of Burnley, Lancashire. The property is situated within walking distance of many services inclusive of shops, schools, doctors, hospital and children centres. Finsley House is situated close to the town centre which hosts services such as a college, university, train station, bus station and large shopping centre close by, there is also a swimming baths with a gym.

Finsley House is a detached house which is tastefully decorated.

Finsley House is able to provide accommodation to three families, with a family in this context consisting of one or two parents, and up to two children, aged up to 5 years old.

We are able to provide residential parenting assessments for families, parents aged 14 years and upwards, of any gender, families with learning disabilities, families with a history of abuse, neglect, drug or alcohol addiction/behaviour, families with who have experienced domestic violence, and / or where there are protection concerns as a result of a history of mental health. For families with a physical impairment, we are able to offer a placement if the person is able to climb stairs unaided, as we are unable to accommodate a lift facility, and two of the flats are located on the first floor and, there is also a further flat at the rear of building which require steps to gain entry.

On the ground floor of Finsley House, to the rear of the building there is a flat and on the first floor there are two further flats. Each flat consists of a bedroom, lounge, kitchen and a bathroom with a shower. All flats are fully furnished and equipped with a medication cabinet. Residents are welcome to bring small items of personal possessions such as pictures and ornaments to personalise their flat. Unfortunately due to the size of the flats, residents will be unable to bring large items of furniture. We are also unable to accommodate pets. There is a shared kitchen facilities, and an area for training, meetings, and downtime for families. 

Whilst residing at Finsley House, families will be responsible for funding their own gas and electric. There is a gas meter situated in each flat and an electric meter in the communal porch area in a cabinet. This is so we can assess parent’s ability to budget and maintain a household. Parents are also responsible for the purchase of their own food. This is so we can assess parents’ ability to budget for their shopping and purchase items that can be prepared into healthy balanced meals.

At the side of the property there is a smoking area for parents only. Whilst smoking cessation will be promoted to all parents who smoke, we recognise that some parents may continue to do so, and this allocated area is the only part of the property where residents are permitted to smoke.

Finsley House operates a service with staff available 24-hours of the day, to ensure parents are supported throughout the day and night.

Finsley House also has the facility of portable CCTV footage through the use of an iPad, to enable staff to continuously monitor families. This is to ensure that when situations occur when staff are away from the office, CCTV monitoring can continue to be upheld at all times. All staff are trained during their induction, and understand the requirements and restrictions imposed around the use of electronic monitoring.

The CCTV cameras are in constant use externally at the entrance, exit and to the side of the building, in order to protect the safety of all residents, staff and visitors. Appropriate signs are displayed where CCTV footage is used in communal areas. All CCTV footage, including monitors, are held in a private area in the staff office.

CCTV footage can be requested by the local authority, guardians and the court for viewing. The CCTV system holds footage for a month before the system reboots. If there is a concern, and / or should footage be required, a request should be made within this timescale, prior to the system rebooting. All footage requested would need to be funded by the local authority. This would include any devices and transportation of the footage required.

If footage of a specific incident or area of concern is required, this needs to be requested within 7 days of the incident occurring.

Directors & Management Team:

Noor Ali - Director

Noor is a qualified Social Worker, with a BSc in Mathematics, NVQ L5 in leadership and management and MA in Social Work. He has over 9 years of experience working in fostering and children’s residential homes within the management teams and as a Director, where he has had the opportunity to make a significant difference to vulnerable people’s lives.

Deborah Aremu - Service Manager

Deborah is a qualified Social Worker, with a BSc in Law, and a MA in Social Work. She has over 14 years of experience supporting children in care in various positions including Service Manager, Registered Manager, SSW and Senior Practitioner. She enjoys building relationships with families and supporting them within their role to provide safe, caring and nurturing homes for children and young people, which meet their holistic needs. Deborah also enjoys supporting Social Workers and staffing teams with their professional growth and development, to empower and equip them to best meet the needs of families.

Lauren Brogan – Responsible Individual 

Lauren has Level 3 BTEC national award in business studies, Safeguarding Children and Young People level 4, PAMS Assessment manual, level 3 diploma in children and young people, a level 5 in Leadership and Management in a Health and Social Care setting, and BA Hons in early years’. She has also undertaken the freedom programme facilitator course, which enables her to deliver the freedom programme in group sessions, or alternatively on a 1 – 1 basis. She has been working within residential settings since February 2012, supporting children and young people with challenging behaviours and needs, and supporting families in various roles and capacities, including support worker, and Registered Manager, and more recently Responsible Individual.

Vaheed Shah – Interim Manager

Vaheed has worked at Finsley House since October 2014, and holds the following qualifications: Level 3 Law & Criminology, Level 3 Children and Young People and he is currently completing a Level 5 qualification in leadership and management. He has experience working as a Family Support Worker, Key Worker, and Deputy Manager within the centre, prior to his recent promotion to his current post as interim manager.

Chantelle Canavan – Deputy Manager

Chantelle has a Level 3 diploma in Health and Social Care, and is currently working towards a Level 5 qualification in leadership and management. Over the years she has gained ample experience of working within care settings as a senior support worker, including supporting patients with mental health needs. She joined Finsley House in May 2022 as a Family Support Worker, and due to her commitment to supporting families within the centre, has recently progressed to the Deputy Manager post.

Social Workers

Social Workers

We have employed qualified Social Workers to complete and undertake assessments at Kaleidoscope, one of whom has a wealth of experience working in local authorities in child protection teams and with children in care, and has vast experience developing care packages and support plans for young people with care experience. She has also supported young people and their families, completed pathway plans and children and family assessments for families with a range of different needs, including mental health, complex safeguarding, county lines and has worked alongside children with disabilities social workers, supporting children with additional learning needs.

Our other Social Worker has experience working with adults with mental health needs, learning disabilities, and drug and alcohol misuse issues. She was also a mental health advocate, and has supported victims of domestic abuse and care leavers in her advocacy role.

Our Social Workers have completed the following training since joining Kaleidoscope:

• Recognising common mental health problems
• Equality and diversity
• Data Security
• Parent Assess
• Assessment Process and Delivery

• Freedom programme and Domestic violence in house training
• Paediatric First Aid

Consultant Psychotherapist

Kaleidoscope has commissioned the services of a qualified, independent Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist. She is care-experienced, and has 25 years of experience supporting vulnerable individuals in various roles, including care leavers, foster carers, children in SEN schools, and individuals in the community, where she has assessed their needs, and provided counselling and therapeutic support. She is currently working towards her Doctorate in Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy, and has a wealth of experience using a range of strategies, theories and therapeutic models to provide support to parents, carers, children and young people, and undertake assessments of needs. She also provides support and guidance to the staffing team, to aide them in their relationship building, communication and direct work with families.

Support Workers / Key Workers

Support Workers

We have employed a number of skilled and experienced support workers, who undertake direct work and key work sessions with families, as well as observations, and complete daily records based on their direct and indirect interactions.

Our support worker has a Diploma of Higher Education in Working with Young People in Residential Childcare (Level 3). He has experience working within a children’s residential home, where he has experience in supporting and managing challenging behaviours, which has provided him with transferable skills, within his current role as a family support worker.

We have also employed a support worker who has a Counselling and psychotherapy access to nursing pathway and is presently completing an Undergraduate adult nursing degree at UCLAN. She has experience working in supported living provisions, all of which has equipped her with knowledge and skills, including compassion and empathy, which has been pivotal in her supportive role at Kaleidoscope.

Another support worker has a Level 3 qualification in childcare, and has years of experience working in nurseries, which has provided her with a comprehensive, working knowledge of child development.

One of our support workers has attained a Level 3 Cache qualification in Health and Social Care, and she is currently completing her BA (Hons) in Social Work. Alongside attaining her qualifications, she has worked as a family support worker for a number of years, increasing her skills, knowledge and experience of supporting families and safeguarding children.

A long standing member of the team has a Level 3 Diploma Children and Young People Workforce, and experience working as a domestic abuse support worker and a Social Prescriber.

Another member of the team has a Level 3 diploma in counselling and PTSD, and previous experience working in a supportive capacity to individuals with mental health needs.

The newest support worker has a Level 3 in Children and Young People's Workforce: Residential Childcare qualification, and previous experience working in Children’s residential care where she worked with individuals with challenging behaviour.

Training – Support Workers

We encourage and support all of our support workers to regularly attend training, to increase their knowledge and skillset, and ensure their practice remains up to date. Training consists of statutory and mandatory training, and any training that we believe will be of benefit to our families and their needs identified pre and post placement.