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White Orchid Care offers therapeutic residential care to children across our two residential homes, which are based in Milton Keynes and the other just outside of Bedford.   Additionally, we provide outreach support to children.   We have been providing care to children for over 10 years and we are proud of how we have helped shape children's lives for the better.  We currently own 2 homes, one  which can care for up to 6 children and the other 4.   At the point of referral our maximum upper age limit is 12 years. Careful matching is undertaken to ensure that risks are assessed, and information is shared.   We care for children who have had a difficult childhood, who have experienced trauma and who are not currently able to remain living with their families. As a result of their experiences, it is likely the children we care for will have experienced multiple placement breakdowns. At White Orchid Care we specialise in providing the child with a stable and consistent home where they can grow and flourish into the child we believe in.  

We recognise many children will arrive having just suffered a crisis in their life, whether this be a placement breakdown or removal from birth family, and we will provide them with a feeling of safety and containment and allow them to settle. We believe that providing children with a consistent and nurturing environment can allow them the opportunity to look at what they may be struggling with and come to terms with the journey they have experienced. We will seek to really understand their journey and trauma and consider what factors have impinged on their development. Learning what did not work in the past is crucial and at White Orchid Care it is the adult’s responsibility to understand the child’s past and care for them accordingly. We seek to address any of the vital building blocks that children may have missed out on through direct work by skilled carers, individual therapy, access to a range of experiences and consistent support. 

The relationship between the children and the adults is crucial in the effectiveness of our provision, children need to have trusted relationships with adults to allow them the support they need to develop appropriate attachments, and we are proactive in building this type of relationship. We show and reinforce a caring message whilst being honest and open with the children in our care. We commit to the child regardless of their plan or behaviour and we reinforce that we accept them for who they are. We appreciate that for many children trusting adults takes time and courage, so we understand that it is a two-way process, and each child is an individual. 

Alongside the use of individual therapy, a significant factor in the success of White Orchid Care is the therapeutic setting it offers children. We have created an environment which promotes thinking, listening, reflection, understanding and development. We have a strong focus on developing our carer’s skills and abilities in understanding and responding to trauma. Providing carers with the space to think about their practice and about the children enables them to be more aware of how they manage situations and of why the children respond as they do. This enables them to continually develop as practitioners and to assist the children effectively to make positive changes. We believe that work to help children deal with trauma is not only carried out by qualified therapists, but it can also be through therapeutic relationships which do not solely exist within a therapy room. For this reason, our carers whilst not being qualified therapists are trained to enable them to support children therapeutically. They have gained skills in a variety of therapeutic approaches including Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Therapeutic Crisis Intervention, Resilience and Understanding Attachment. This range of training enables carers to use a variety of methods when caring for children who have emotional and behavioural difficulties.