The Rossendale Trust

Rossendale Hall was purchased by two families – the Chapmans and the Hydes – in 1972.  Both families had children with disabilities, and were thus very aware that there was no respite provision for families in those circumstances. The families had agreed that they would find a way to provide that service, and buying the Hall seemed to fit their plans. 

They had raised the money for the purchase from the sale of their own homes, plus a donation from a local benefactor. Both families moved into the Hall in the spring of 1973.

In order to launch their fledgling service, the Chapmans and Hydes immediately began to fundraise for the construction of a purpose-built respite unit.  Over the next three years, with the unstinting support of many people from Sutton and Macclesfield, the group achieved their goal and the Short Stay Unit was opened in 1976. The Trust was now truly on its way.

During the 1980s the Trustees decided to move into the provision of residential care for adults with learning and physical disabilities, which remains the basis of our service. 

In 2008 the Trustees began a transition from providing residential care to the provision of care and support in Supported Living, a transformation which was taking place nationally in caring for the learning disabled. This fundamental change in providing care is based upon a commitment to agreeing and delivering a personal service to each individual. 

A key part of this process was the construction in 2009 – 11 of two accommodation blocks, each comprising 4 x 4 person apartments, on the Hall site in Sutton.  The majority of the new tenants had been residents at the Trust for many years, but a total of 11 tenants new to Rossendale also moved into the apartments in the second of the two blocks to be completed – Rose Gardens, in 2011.

In January 2013 a further development (Canalside View) opened in Macclesfield, again a purpose-built project, providing 7 shared apartments for 16 tenants. Once again, the majority had previously been residents in the Trust, this time at the Woodlands home. 

In the years since that fundamental change the Trust’s sustainability and development plan has included controlled growth of our Supported Living service to meet the needs of the people who wish to live independently.  

The same commitment to providing a personalised service has generated other changes:

In the period since 2011 the Trust’s day service – Oakwood – has developed into a person-centred activity service, delivering more than 300 sessions per week.  

And in 2013 the Trust launched a supported employment scheme – WorkTaste – which has grown steadily, building partnerships with employers and organisations in the community.

In this way the Trust has expanded to offer three aspects of the same philosophy to some of the most vulnerable – and excluded – people in our community.

Nonetheless the central purpose remains unchanged. Rossendale Trust provides care and support to more than 70 individuals, living at nine sites in Macclesfield and Buxton. The people we support have a wide spectrum of ability and disability. 

A core purpose of Supported Living is to enable each person to explore the choices in their own lives, and to fulfil their potential. We support all of our tenants to achieve their potential, whatever their level of ability.

The Trust’s vision reflects the 40 years of caring:

“To create an environment in which people can develop and grow, enabling them to have ownership of their lives, and futures”.

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