Well, we really liked Holy Cross. It is a bit out of the way and took ages to find but it's in a really nice position.
The staff were lovely, the residents who were able to speak said hello and talked with us. There was a guy in the hydro pool when we got there and it looks fab. My youngest grandson made himself at home and pinched some cake from the nurses (aided by his great grandfather!!). Everyone looked as if they were happy there. They were rehearsing an x factor show performed by staff and residents. There is the Holy Cross Bake Off later in the week. There was a stroke club going on in the activity room - apparently it's a regular weekly event for outside people to come in. The activity room is great, the sensory room is small but good. They are planning on building a bigger one in the near future.
I will admit that I was worried about Helen being so young and in a facility with much older people. However, there is a youngish man in there and most of the staff are youngish. The therapist we were with today said that if Helen was to become more aware and showed distress about being in that place then we could look for somewhere else for her. And if by some miracle somewhere was looking specifically for teenage girls, then she could move on with no problem.
Funding hasn't yet been approved by our PCT. I thought that it had but Holy Cross have only just sent off their costings. It is unlikely, but not impossible, that Helen will move this side of Christmas or even before the new year because of the length of time the PCT will take. There still isn't a bed for her but she is top of the waiting list. There is a man ready for discharge but hasn't got a flat to go to yet. And there are several poorly patients as well. In many ways it will be easier for us if she is still in Basingstoke because of the different bits of the family wanting to visit and certain members not wanting to be anywhere near others. And it's her birthday on Christmas Day. However, they did say that we could have Christmas dinner at Holy Cross if we wanted.