What is Therapeutic Community?

Put simply, a therapeutic community is a setting in which people with similar problems meet and provide mutual support to help overcome those problems, with structured rules and guidelines.

In a Phoenix Futures therapeutic community, our service users take responsibility for their and their peers, behaviour. Service users are given roles and responsibilities for cooking, cleaning, gardening etc. within a full and structured time table of group and one to one work to address their behaviour and thinking.

The therapeutic community model is a recognised, effective way of treating people with drug and alcohol dependencies through four key stages; induction, primary phase, senior stage and re-entry. As service users progress through the four stages they are given increased responsibility for the running of the service and for their peers.

Induction: this focuses on settling new clients into the service and allows individuals time to familiarise themselves with the house rules and the self help concept of the programme.

Primary phase: clients work on positive change and self exploration. During this stage service users are expected to work on addressing past behaviour patterns which have contributed to their chaotic substance misuse and life style. The promotion of right living and life skills is incorporated into the daily structure of the programme.

Secondary phase: Individuals put in place solid commitments within the wider community in preparation for their future on leaving Phoenix Futures. These commitments vary in nature and range from voluntary work to college courses. This stage also enables service users to put into practice the coping strategies which they have learnt during the programme.

Re-entry: This is a separate project and is semi independent. Clients become responsible for all budgeting, cooking and time management issues that are associated with positive and productive living. The focus is on re-entering the wider community. This stage completes the service user's treatment and they are then re-housed and live fully independently.