Please Note, Names Have Been Changed in Order to Protect Anonymity

Move on case study

Ray Gordon’s reflections on Chalklhill Road and moving on to lower support – September 2017

(Please note, names have been changed in order to protect anonymity)

I grew up in and around London. I have a good relationship with my family, especially my Dad. He’s always been very supportive of me. I got into boxing when I was thirteen. I used to go to a club and I got pretty good at it. I won a junior British National Title which people from England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland competed in. I was lucky. I never got any serious injuries. And there was a good social scene around the club.

I boxed until I was 19. I started college in Holloway. But I lost interest in my course. I became quite lazy and hung out with friends drinking and smoking weed a lot. One day I got into an argument with someone on a bus. They tried to attack me, so I punched them. I was arrested and sent to prison. I was transferred to lots of different prisons. The problem was that when people heard about the boxing, and they saw I am a big guy, they’d try their chances. Prison was horrible. It was really quite frightening. I felt I had to watch my back all the time. I could never relax. And I got into fights, because people wanted to fight me.

I was diagnosed with a schizoid disorder in prison. I was having hallucinations and I was also very unhappy. I had no freedom and I had to watch my back all the time. People assumed I was a tough guy. But I found the whole thing very scary. So after being transferred to different prisons around the country I was eventually sent to Ealing & St Bernards. I felt much safer there. There were people to look after me.

But the scary thing about hospital is that there is no end date. In prison there is always a date you are moving towards. In hospital, there is just all this time stretching in front of you and you have no idea if and when you will ever leave.

But I did leave. And I came to Chalkhill Road. I remember being assessed and then invited to come and have a look at Chalkhill Road. I had a friend that was already living here and he told me it was good. There was a football team. The house was clean and tidy. Staff help you and try to get you into stuff. The day I moved to Chalkhill Road, I had a good sleep. It was very tiring and a big moment. I felt so good after that sleep. Then I was given a tour of the building and the garden. A member of staff took me out and showed me the area. We went to a shop and bought some things I would need. We went to a park. I was so happy. I was free.

I have been taking medication for about six years. It helps my mental health, but there are side effects. When I first moved in, the medication made me very tired and I would often sleep in late. I found it hard to concentrate. I have had a few different medications and they affect me differently. But mostly they calm me down and make me dozy.

While I lived at Chalkhill Road, which has been two and a half years, I have done quite a lot. I did cooking courses. I played in the football team. I completed an FA Level 1 Football coaching course. This led to a job coaching the football team at Ealing & St Bernards. I like the work. It’s tiring and the players are cheeky. They tell me I’m a rubbish player, but I just tell them to shut up and play better. I’d like to do more work in sports coaching. I have a friend who is a boxing coach and I’d like to do that one day to earn some money. You can earn money coaching fitness and sports.

Ade was Ray’s keyworker. Here is her account of the placement:

When Ray moved in to Chalkhill Road and we got to know him and his character and personality, staff thought he was a gentle giant and that is exactly what he has turned out to be. We have never had any issues with Ray. My life has been made a lot easier in that there have not been any incident reports to write, nor serious causes for concern. Ray has been a pleasure to keywork. He really has. He is very generous towards staff and residents. Sometimes he is too kind and that makes him vulnerable. He’ll give stuff away because he feels sorry for other residents, or lends them money and does not expect it back. I think he has learned to say ‘no’ while he has lived at Chalkhill, and that is a good thing.

There has only been one backward step during Ray’s two and a half years at Chalkhill Road. Ray went to a partywith some other residents, not long after he moved in, at which they all took cocaine. Ray was subsequently very sorry about this and reflected on what a mistake it had been. This was an unfortunate event, but Ray seemed to genuinely understand why it must not be repeated.

We’ve had some concerns about Ray’s memory. He sometimes leaves his wallet, phone and keys around. He also forgets to take his medication which means that we have had to prompt him. We have been unable to transition towards him self-administering his meds. This is often seen as a key step in recovery, but because of his memory problems, we can never be sure that Ray will take his meds, even though he seems to have the best intentions to do so.

I feel Ray was very unlucky with his index offence. Official reports about this incident are a little vague, but it is clear that Ray got onto a bus and someone challenged him. He was playing music quite loud it would seem and somebody said something to him which escalated into a verbal fight, then a physical fight. Ray must have punched the man hard, because he hit the deck straight away. Ray was found to be under the influence of cocaine, which probably changed his behaviour and made him more aggressive. I believe Ray’s care team and staff at Chalkhill Road have played a significant role in Ray’s recovery, hence his successful move on to a lower support accommodation.

His index offence seems so out of sorts with the very gentle person we know and like at Chalkhill Road. It is true that he got into fights in prison too. But he is a big guy. He was a boxer and he is certainly a target for a certain kind of man who feels he has something to prove by taking on the biggest guy in the room. I have seen how some men in the street react to Ray. They perceive him as a challenge. And then of course he is actually very gentle and sensitive. This can’t have been a good combination in prison and I know he had some awful experiences in our correctional facilities.

Our main challenge with Ray has been to keep him interested in stuff. He will try anything. He’s often the leader in a group of residents who will come forward and try stuff first, as well as encouraging others. But he loses interest very quickly. It could be to do with his memory and although he insists he was never injured boxing, I think that he must have taken several blows to the face and head, which can’t help. We tried so many things, but he always gave up after a couple of weeks.

Then Ray got into football and the Level 1 football coaching course provided by the Football Association. And finally we had hit upon something that he kept going with and showed great commitment to. Although, it was interesting that when we asked him if he would like to complete the Level 2 coaching course, he said he is quite happy with his Level 1. Perhaps this is something he will do in the future. I certainly hope so and he has indicated that he might do additional qualifications, especially if it helps him earn some money and gain greater independence.

Ray has found a nice flat to move to. I have been to visit it with him. He has two friends living in the same building. He will go any day now. We are just waiting for the person who currently lives in the flat to move out. We will miss him and hope that he stays in touch.

A week after completing this report, Ray moved to his new flat.

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