SUPPORTED HOUSING
A SAFE PLACE TO GROW
F or more than two decades, Kent Recovery Houses has quietly delivered something vital within the UK’ s drug and alcohol landscape – a recovery-focused, supported housing model that offers far more than accommodation. Operated by Change Grow Live, it provides safety, stability and the conditions in which longterm recovery can take root.
Positioned between residential rehabilitation and independent living, the service offers a crucial bridge during one of the most vulnerable stages of recovery. For people rebuilding their lives after problematic substance use, that bridge can be transformative.
A consultant clinical psychologist who helped us embed the core principles of trauma-informed care into our practice described us as‘ nonconventional but effective’, and that’ s exactly where we sit – somewhere in between rehab and independent living. That‘ somewhere in between’ is often where recovery is either strengthened or
Supported accommodation can build lasting recovery, says Aimee Strudwick
lost. Kent Recovery Houses demonstrates what can happen when supported accommodation is recognised not simply as housing, but as a recovery-focused, psychologically informed environment that enables people to sustain change.
ROOTED IN DIGNITY Residents enter the service following a period of abstinence and are supported within an environment designed not only to maintain recovery, but to strengthen it. Referrals come from across treatment, criminal justice, health and homelessness pathways, reflecting the breadth of need the service responds to.
Accommodation may exist, but it may not be conducive to sustaining recovery. If someone is living around substance use, that environment may place recovery at risk. This recognition – that recovery is shaped by environment, safety and connection – sits at the centre of the model.
A distinctive strength of Kent Recovery Houses is its 18 self-contained, single-occupancy flats, offering privacy, dignity and autonomy while retaining structured support. This model creates the stability needed for people to engage with recovery and develop independence. For many residents, having their own safe space is itself part of healing.
HELPING PEOPLE THRIVE Support extends well beyond maintaining abstinence. Through a structured three-stage programme, residents engage in psychosocial groups, practical support, volunteering, vocational opportunities and preparation for move-on. The emphasis is not solely on avoiding relapse, but on building meaningful, sustainable lives in recovery.
We support residents to build confidence, broaden horizons and create lives that move away from previous harmful networks and toward independence. This is recovery capital in action – strengthening social connection, purpose, identity and opportunity. Move-on support, alongside up to a year of aftercare, reinforces an important principle – that recovery is not a single intervention but a sustained journey.
Emerging outcomes highlight the impact of this approach:
– 60 per cent sustained abstinence after leaving recovery housing.
– 60 per cent secured longterm accommodation.
LASTING CHANGE Perhaps most significantly, more than half of residents who leave the service do not return to structured treatment, pointing to sustained recovery outcomes. This reinforces the wider value of recovery-focused supported housing – reducing relapse risk, promoting housing stability, easing pressure on acute services and criminal justice systems, and supporting longterm social reintegration.
A defining strength of Kent Recovery Houses is the recovery community residents become part of, from conservation projects and photography, to fundraising and volunteering. These opportunities help people develop recovery capital, form healthier social networks and reconnect with identity beyond substance use. This is where trauma-informed and psychologically informed practice becomes tangible – in relationships, community and the creation of spaces where people feel safe enough to grow.
10 • DRINK AND DRUGS NEWS • JULY / AUGUST 2026 WWW. DRINKANDDRUGSNEWS. COM