Each week we will be sharing new stories written by people who have used one-page profiles from birth to end of life. Find the latest stories here and join us in the journey to 100.
Helen Sanderson Associates help people make positive changes in their lives through person centred practices. Speak to the team about one-page profile training and support.
Blog by Helen Sanderson, Helen Sanderson Associates
We believe that all people regardless of age or circumstance should be treated as individuals and should feel empowered to have choice and control over their own lives. We believe that employees work better if they feel listened to and understood; that supportive teams are more cohesive – achieving better results; that school children thrive in an environment that encourages and celebrates individuality; that patients in hospital will have a stronger sense of wellbeing and a better recovery with a personal approach to their care.
Since first developing the concept of a one-page profile in 2004 to help improve understanding between my daughter Laura and her teachers at school, I have advocated their usefulness in all areas of life and work. At HSA we use profiles in our work with people in health, social care, education, communities and families. We use them in our personal lives too and we see them as a fundamental part of personalisation and the foremost way of keeping a person at the centre of all decision making regardless of their circumstance.
This has been a compelling year in terms of our learning around using one-page profiles at scale and their potential to effect change when adopted into the culture of an organisation. Twenty-four schools in Lancashire are committed to using profiles with over 1000 pupils and teachers. We have seen how they can work well in a hospital setting with 40 patients on a ward each having their own. And we are working with a dementia care provider who want to use one-page profiles with the 5000 people they support.
We have launched this site to share with you the many ways that one-page profiles can empower people to have greater choice and control in their life. This is the first time such a collection of one-page profile examples has been shared so widely, and it has been both a rewarding and thought provoking journey to learn about their reach and value to each and every person.
I hope you follow and are inspired by, as I am, the 100 powerful stories of people who have achieved personal success through using one-page profiles and that you too can use this tool for positive change in your life and work.
Create your own one-page profile here.
Holly was born with a chromosome abnormality which was diagnosed following genetic analysis at the age of fifteen months when she was failing to meet the usual childhood milestones. How this affects her is that she has global developmental delays in all aspects of physical, emotional, social and intellectual skills, so although she is eleven right now, developmentally she has more in common with other children of about four or five.
Holly and her parents moved to a new area the year before she was due to start secondary school, a time during which they were beginning to realise as a family that she was going to benefit from going to a “special” school, as she was simply too vulnerable for mainstream secondary education. Her parents had done a great deal of research before they moved, checking out the local schools and visiting them to talk about Holly and her particular needs, and had settled on one school whose head teacher felt sure she could provide a safe, fun environment in which Holly would thrive.
However, as time progressed and choice of schools began to be the hot topic of conversation amongst parents and teachers alike, Holly’s’ parents felt that every time they mentioned their preferred secondary school they were met by lots of sucking in of breath through teeth and comments like ‘it’s a very sought after school you know’, as if the prospect of Holly being offered a place there was highly unlikely. After visiting all three specialist schools in the area, two of which were twenty miles away from the family home, they concluded, as did the head teacher of Holly’s primary school and the Senco of the chosen Senior school, that this choice would indeed best meet Holly’s needs.
The family prepared a one-page profile in time for Holly’s transfer review. The unit manager at Holly’s primary school was so impressed with the document that after the meeting she was in touch with the local authority to find out more about one page profiles and person-centred planning and reviews, and booked herself on a two day course. She was subsequently granted permission to pilot both one-page profiles and person-centred reviews within the specialist provision unit at Holly’s primary school, with a view to potentially rolling the person centred approach out for all pupils, not just in the special support unit, but across the whole school.
Holly’s application to the special senior school was initially unsuccessful, and she was offered a place in the local mainstream comprehensive. Both the SENCO and the head teacher of the mainstream school agreed that they could not meet Holly’s needs, and after a person centred appeal, was put forward, focussed around the detail of her one-page profile, the decision was overturned within two weeks and a costly and stressful tribunal was avoided. Holly started at her new school in September (2013), and is thoroughly enjoying her new environment supported by teachers who feel they knew her far better from day one because of the information contained in her profile.
My name is Georgie. I am 17 years old (nearly 18!) and I have just finished school. I have autism and an acquired brain injury and because of this I had a Statement at school. I have no idea what this said about me but I think it meant that the school got some money to help support me. I have a one page profile and I do know what that says because I did it with my Mum and Dad. It has been a really important thing for me to have and I would like to tell you about this.
At school each year I had new teachers and teaching assistants who did not know me well. Some of them thought that I was just like all the other students because I know how to cope with the things I find most difficult. But I’m not like all the other students, I’m me. I needed my teachers to know the things that are important to me, because they really matter to me and knowing about them helps to make my days good. I had two operations because I had a huge abscess which took over the left hand side of my brain and because of this I have learning difficulties. I’m a really good learner but I need to learn in a certain way and need people to help me. At first the school gave me lots of different teaching assistants and I found this very hard because they didn’t know me or understand me, even though they were very nice and did their best to help me. Finally in Year 12 the school paid attention to my one page profile and so they gave me two teaching assistants to support me every day who got to know me really well. I was happy with them and they knew when I was not happy even though I would not say anything.
Miss Whiteman is the Vice Principal for Personalisation at school and we have looked at my one page profile together when I was finding things tough and worrying. She got to know what matters to me and how to support me the best and made sure that other teachers and teaching assistants knew all of this information. It doesn’t take long read my one page profile but it definitely helps to make sure things are right for me and that I have good days at school.
Next year I may go to college to study child care. I had to have an interview with James from the learning support team and I took my one page profile to share with him. He thought it was helpful to get to know me a lot better even though he already had my LDA document. I made sure he kept a copy so that he can share this if I do start college.
At the moment I am volunteering 4 days a week in the Reception class at a primary school. I really love it there. The children all love me and want to be with me. I help them with their learning and help the staff by getting the classrooms ready. Before I started at Brooklands Farm Primary School I sent them my one page profile. The Head of Lower School shared my one page profile with all the staff in the Foundation Unit and this helped me to have a really easy start to my work there. I knew that they knew about my difficulties but they also knew what I’m really good at and what people like about me. For example, I’m very sensitive to noise and this is on my one page profile. I do know how to cope but it is good if people understand that noisy times can be difficult for me. Sometimes when the children are being really noisy the staff check that I’m okay with this. If they hadn’t seen my one page profile they wouldn’t know this important thing about me.
My Mum shared my one page profile with a school she is working with and the Deputy Head saw that I am a Northampton Saints rugby fan and that I have a season ticket. Her two sons both play in the first team and when she read how important this is to me she got me two signed photographs which made me feel really special.
I think it is a great idea for everyone to have a one page profile especially if you have special needs like me and need people to understand you. I am really hoping that I get an apprenticeship at a primary school because that would be the perfect job for me. My one page profile will be really important for people to get to know me not just that I have autism and learning difficulties. I am really glad that I have a one page profile and I will show it to anyone who I think needs to know all about me.
Jenny Carter is a self advocate. As someone who has autism, Jenny found that she was often misunderstood and not always able to get her point across in her work life and in social situations. She wanted to create a one-page profile to help her overcome these difficulties and better advocate for herself and others. This is Jenny’s story in her own words.
Jenny’s one-page profile
Written by Jenny carter
My name is Jenny Carter I am 30 years old and I have Autistic Spectrum Condition, Dyspraxia and Epilepsy. Being on the Autistic Spectrum affects me in many ways and can mean that I perceive situations and people and respond to them differently to the way one might expect. For example, in social situations I am very direct. In the past I have gotten into trouble for saying things the way I see them. As I mean no harm when I do this, it can make me feel frustrated or upset when people take it the wrong way. On the positive side, seeing things differently means that I have a unique perspective on the world and this means that I can sometimes see things before they happen!
I live with my Mum and Dad. I love athletics and was the National Junior Champion for 100 and 200 metres sprinting. I am a self advocate. This means that I speak out to help myself and others to have a voice. I am also a Partners in Policymaking Graduate. I am one of the leads for self advocacy in Wirral and a Director of Together All Are Able; a Community Interest Company supporting Self Advocates.
I created my first one- page profile myself with help from a friend and colleague, Vicky, in 2012. I wanted people to understand me and what I was saying and I thought having a one-page profile could help me to achieve this. I often felt that people would shout me down when I expressed an opinion and not ask me questions to understand what it was I was trying to say. I wanted a way of explaining to people that they needed to talk to me more before disagreeing with my points.
Helen Sanderson asked to see my first draft one-page profile and she was impressed. She said she could help me improve it so that it achieved more of what I wanted it to achieve. So in May 2013 Helen and I worked on the sections ‘what is important to me’ and ‘how best to support me’. There had been some confusion between these two points in the first draft and making sure this information is clear is very important as other people can then support you in the way that is right for you.
I use my one-page page profile mainly for work. I update it myself. I share it with the people who I am working with and the people who I am to have meetings with. Some of the other people I work with use one-page profiles too and when they do, it always makes our communication with each other so much smoother. I sometimes send my one-page profile by email before I meet someone and I also carry it on my ipad so that I can share it with people in person.
Having a one-page profile has made a big difference to me. I am listened to more now than I was before. The Directors that I work with at Together All Are Able tell me if they will be late for a meeting (as this is something that I have stated is important for me to know). It helps me to feel more in control. Because it helps me communicate more clearly and helps people to understand me easily I feel that people are more open to working with me now. There are far less situations where I feel upset or misunderstood after speaking my mind and this is a very positive outcome of my one-page profile.
An example of how this man’s one-page profile has helped him gain confidence and achieve greater independence.
Earl’s one-page profile
Written by Cat Eglington
Forty-one year old Earl uses our services at The Manor in Brampton, Cambridgeshire. Earl has Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus. Spina Bifida occurs when the bones and nerves of the spine do not fully develop while the unborn child is in the womb. Hydrocephalus is also known as water on the brain.Earl’s one-page profile was developed to share information about himself with anyone who comes into contact with him at The Manor. He has two profiles on the wall in his bedroom, in pride of place for all to see. One is his original colour profile and another is a copy that Earl has coloured in and drawn on himself. Both are on the wall alongside all his pictures and posters.
Earl really enjoyed developing his profile and had lots of ideas that he wanted to share. As he is such a big motor sport fan he wanted a racing car on his profile alongside a picture of his favourite drivers, Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button. Earl’s profile was developed over a relaxing afternoon spent talking about the things that are important to him, his hopes for the future and how it is best to support him. Earl also asked friends what they liked best about him.
Within everyday life Earl’s one-page profile has been used to inform new staff and volunteers how best to support him and to understand more about Earl as a person; his likes and dislikes. The profile acts as a voice for Earl, communicating how he likes to be best supported and for staff at The Manor to understand how to fully support Earl on a day-to-day basis. His more detailed person-centred plan is available for anyone to read who would like to know more information about Earl or as a guide that can be referred to at any time.
Earl has become more confident as a person and more goal-orientated since creating his one-page profile and he clearly feels more connected to people in both a social and professional way as they can understand him better. Earl now has a girlfriend at The Manor.
Earls one-page profile sets out the important information that people need to know to support him well such as; he likes to dress himself; he likes to get up early; he likes to be around people and he likes to read the paper. It also states what is important to him so that support staff know the food, people and activities paramount in his life.
Earl likes to be as independent as possible and he is happy that his one-page profile has helped him to do this. His support team recently helped Earl to order new equipment such as a banana board, a sling and a handling belt. All these items are to help Earl to maintain his independence.
The outcome of a one-page profile for Earl has been better choice and control. He feels empowered by the information he shares and believes that the team around him now understand him better and can help him live more independently as a result.
Corrina wrote this story last year (before the birth of her first child). She shares with us how using a one-page profile in her role as a primary school teacher has helped her feel valued as an individual within her staff team and how it has significantly improved her appraisal and performance management process.
Corrina’s one-page profile
Written by Corrina Warren
I am 26 years old and I am a primary school teacher at Oxley Park Academy, I have worked at Oxley Park for five years. I work in Key Stage Two and I love working and learning alongside the children. In June 2013 I am due to become a mum for the first time and I can’t wait for my son to be born.
I have a one-page profile as a member of staff at Oxley Park Academy. As a school we are currently working hard on driving forward personalisation and the Academy Principal, Cathy Higgins, felt that it was important for the staff to be valued as individuals as well as the children.
We had training on what the purpose of a one-page profiles is and how to develop each section. Cathy then asked us to write our own for us to share with her at our Performance Management meeting. The purpose of doing this was so that Cathy had a greater understanding of the staff as individuals and what she could do to support us and to help develop us as professionals.
Teachers have Performance Management Meetings with Cathy on a termly basis. As part of the review process we share our one-page profiles and update Cathy, where necessary, on any amendments that have been made. Cathy uses the information from the one-page profile to help us set targets as well as offer strategies and guidance in order to help support us as individuals.
For me personally, the ‘Like and Admire’ is my favourite section of my one-page profile. This section reminds me of how I am valued and appreciated by my colleagues and always makes me smile when I read it. However, in terms of usefulness, the ‘How to support me best’ section is the most important. This is the section that is reviewed and updated most frequently and is the most important bit for Cathy to know because ultimately she is the one who implements the support for me.
Having the one-page profile and sharing it with Cathy has meant that she now has a greater understanding of what she can do in order to help me achieve my goals at work and ensure that what’s important to me is being met. Cathy knows that I like structure and for my job role to be clear, because of this I now have a clearly defined job description which outlines my roles and responsibilities. This has supported me greatly as I know who and what I am responsible for and no longer worry about things that are not part of my job role.
I now feel that I am able to confidently approach Cathy if I have any concerns about work and my work/life balance and I use my one-page profile to help me do this. It enables me to communicate with Cathy and share my feelings in a way that I might otherwise find difficult to do. Having the information written down in front of me ensures that I share how I am really feeling and Cathy also keeps a copy of it to keep on file with my Performance Management Meeting notes so that she also has a record of what has been agreed.
Ellen’s one-page profile
An example of how creating a one-page profile has empowered Ellen to speak out about the ‘little things’ and make positive changes in her life.
Written by Cat Eglington
Ellen is 66 years old and from the North East of England. She has a condition called hydrocephalus which means she has physical disabilities and a learning disability. She lived with her mum for many years, who supported her with all aspects of her life. Her mum cared for her greatly until she sadly died in 2000. At this point Ellen moved into a supported living service to continue to get the help she needed.
Ellen’s health needs had always been a key focus of the support she received but support staff where she lived were keen to use person-centred thinking and felt that developing a one-page profile with Ellen might capture her own unique ways and wishes. They felt Ellen had grown up being such a kind person that she would often agree politely with other people’s ideas and not express her own wishes. They wanted a way to get to discover and record exactly what was important to Ellen – not just what support she needed with her health.
One of the staff who supported Ellen (Anne) sat and chatted with her for a couple of hours over a cup of tea. She developed a draft one-page profile in this time. Other staff who know Ellen added in details and information that they knew to be important to her. Her brother and sister in-law checked that they felt the profile captured who Ellen was from their perspective.
Ellen’s one-page profile is referred to every day. It is kept in the very front of her support plan. If agency staff ever need to support Ellen they are asked to read her one-page profile to get a succinct overview of what matters to her and to help them understand how to provide good support. Ellen had a person-centred review recently and the one-page profile informed exactly how the review was planned and delivered.
Ellen’s one-page profile highlighted several things that really mattered to her. She loves the soaps (apart from Eastenders) and in her review it was discussed that she would love to go to see the site of the soaps such as Coronation street and Emmerdale. As a result she has been supported to book a holiday , with a carer and a hire car so that she can go and visit all the TV locations that she loves , including Heartbeat country. The volunteer coordinator has connections in TV and is hopeful of pulling a few strings for a couple of visitors passes. Ellen has in the past been offered holidays and been happy to go, but this time the holiday was planned to completely reflect what is important to her.
Ellen has a package of support that focuses on her health needs but staff now better recognise the things that make a difference. They always pop into her flat around the time of the evening Soaps to make sure she has the right channels on her TV. She sometimes finds it hard to see the buttons on the remote .When supporting Ellen over a cup of tea, staff know to make sure Ellen’s cup is topped up with hot water half way through so she never has to drink a cold brew- which she hates!
Another difference to Ellen is that she attends a nearby day centre and said she particularly enjoys the bingo there. As a result of appreciating this staff are now beginning to support Ellen to attend a regular coffee morning in the village she lives in and to attend the local bingo gala nights.
The process of creating a one-page profile gave Ellen the opportunity to put forward more of her own views when in other circumstances she might not. This has helped her make some plans and changes. It has also meant that attention is given to the “little things” that make Ellen feel happy and valued, whilst still appreciating her increasing health needs. Staff who know her feel it helps keep the balance in her life and focuses on improving the quality of support in the way that matters to her.
Mia’s one-page profile
Through the eyes of a 12 year old. Mia shares with us how her one-page profile has helped her communicate what is important to her and how best to support her well. Her Aspergers means that she can sometimes get worried or stressed by situations and having a one-page profile has relieved this fear significantly as the people around her understand her better. Now Mia is celebrated for who she is – this is Mia’s story.
Written by Mia
My name is Mia and I am 12 years old. I am a very sporty person and I like swimming and hockey and athletics. I like to be in the school sports teams and be active. I have Aspergers Syndrome, which means that although I am very clever I sometimes get very stressed and worried and don’t understand people always.
I created a one-page profile because my mum wanted to help me to settle into my new school and be happy. I was moving from primary school to high school and this was a big change for me and I don’t like change. The one-page profile was to help the teachers understand me as a person and what was important to me and how to check if I was o.k. as I don’t always show people when I am stressed. It was also to pass information about what worked well for me from my old school to my new school.
Lots of people were involved in my one-page profile, my mum and dad and my sister contributed about what they liked about me, also my Nan. My school teacher was involved and explained what happens for me in school, but most of all I was able to explain what was important to me and what worries me and how to help me with this.
My one-page profile was given to all of the teachers, because of it my new form teacher knew a bit about me when I went to the school for a trial and this helped me feel relaxed. My one-page profile has been used to help teachers put things in place like homework slips to help me get organised. I’m not very good at this sometimes! My mum has come to the school with some teachers and me to add information when things have changed.
I asked my mum what she thinks of my one-page profile and this is what she said:
“The one-page profile has helped people to understand Mia and look for ways in which she is communicating. She is the vice captain of her form class a position of responsibility that she is exceptionally proud of, without the one-page profile teachers would not have known how important this is for Mia.
“Lots of support has been given to Mia around how to make school better for her and most of it has been with Mia at the centre of the decisions which has helped her to gain confidence and manage a very stressful period in her life. Most importantly, Mia is recognised for her talents and abilities and not just her challenges and difficulties.
“What has clearly come out of Mia’s one-page profile is how Mia doesn’t always show how she is feeling and she now has a great group of friends who Mia has shown her profile too and they too ‘get Mia’. School remains difficult for Mia at times but the one-page profile has clearly helped with information sharing, developing strategies and ensuring Mia is at the centre of her life. It has also helped to develop good relationships with family and teachers and I would without doubt recommend a one-page profile to every child in school.”
This school introduced one-page profiles to all pupils in Alan’s year. The profiles helped pupils think about what was important to them and what support they needed, not just for academia but to achieve their wider ambitions. This is how one-page profiles and the activities around creating one-page profiles worked for Alan.
Alan’s one-page profile
Written by Manchester Grammar School
Alan is a Year 10 pupil at MGS. He is one of our top academic performers and is a tremendously talented young man. It was really interesting for us as a staff to see how someone in this bracket would respond to the activities of the one-page profile.
Whilst it is often the case that one-page profiles can help to solve problems, it is not immediately obvious that Alan has any. The hope was that through engaging with the one-page profile process, Alan would take the opportunity to reflect on the position that he is in and set himself some ambitious targets for the short and medium term. It would also be a chance for Alan to put in writing and discuss with his parents and tutor anything that he thought could be improved upon and the part that they might play in this.
Alan said of his one-page profile; ‘It gets people to think about their strengths weaknesses and what they could do to improve themselves. It made them think about what makes them tick and asks them to try to do certain things more often so that they have more good days.’
When talking about his own experience Alan said, ‘Personally I was using it to think about support I might need in subjects that weren’t quite going as well as the rest rather than things that were going badly wrong.’
This was interesting as it shows that even for a top performer the one-page profile could help to focus the pupil’s mind on subtle aspects of school life that might need attention. Alan placed a lot of value in the supplementary exercises that we did beyond the one-page profile. The first of these was an activity where he imagined that he had been sent to the future, first by five years and then by ten years, and wrote a letter to his current self, to explain what life is like there.
‘It made me realise that I haven’t decided what I want to do yet. It made me start to identify important decisions that are on the horizon and made me think about where I might be going in the future’ he said.
The next activity we asked Alan to do was to consider what was working at school and what wasn’t. At a parent – Form Tutor meeting these ideas were discussed and both parties made contributions to Alan’s ideas.
Of the general process Alan said, ‘Working/not working gives the important people in school an idea about how people are getting on. If you’ve written down serious things are not working then parents and teachers would act on it.’
Of his own experiences Alan said, ‘I was struggling with Islam in Religious Studies, especially exam preparation. This was discussed after working/not working and Form Tutor day. My Form Tutor spoke to my teacher about it and it has made a big difference.’
Having a one-page profile at school to think about his academic studies, his relationship with peers and teachers, his future and to identify what support he needs to achieve what he has outlined as important has been very helpful to Alan. It has given him another way to get his point across and helped him think about his school life and wider life with greater reflection.
One-page profile are being updated throughout the year and Alan is sharing a draft version
An example of how introducing one-page profiles within the school gave teachers a valuable insight into their students, equipping them with information that would lead to better support and relationships.
John’s one-page profile
Written by Manchester Grammar School Head of Year
John is a Year 10 pupil at MGS. Academically John did not have a good start to Year 10 and his report at the end of his first term was not as good as we had hoped. His teachers were citing a lack of effort and his exam grades were way down on previous reports. We had hoped that each of our pupils would benefit from the one-page profiles in many ways, but it was a particularly opportune time for John to start the process.
Following his report John was having regular meetings with me (his Head of Year) to discuss his individual subjects and his approach to work. Meanwhile John was completing several activities with his form tutor around our one-page profile programme. It was the one-page profile and in particular the section on ‘What is important to me?’ that was the most useful. John had received guidance about filling in his one-page profile from his Form Tutor and from me. He knew that when he came to explain what was important to him, he was only supposed to include things that either he could consciously control or things that he could control with the help of others.
In ‘what’s important to me’ John wrote,
‘To get a good night’s sleep. I feel I go to bed well too late and then have to get up really early. This affects me in my lessons as I feel droopy and put no effort into my classwork.’
He also wrote,
‘To get a healthy breakfast. Usually I don’t get breakfast because I don’t put the effort into getting breakfast. During some lessons I can only think about getting some food at break or lunch and therefore my classwork suffers.’
This gave me as John’s Head of Year an immediate insight in to the problems that John was having. As John always seems like a cheerful and awake young man when I see him it had never occurred to me to talk to him about sleep and his diet. The one-page profile gave me a vehicle to talk about these issues with John and very quickly I was able to gather some more information around the subject. It turned out that John was only having breakfast one school day per week and that he was rarely in bed before midnight. All of a sudden it was not surprising that John’s concentration in lessons and the quality of his work had deteriorated. In ‘How best to support me’ John had simply written,
‘Send me to bed at a reasonable time so I am allowed to have a good night sleep.’
and,
‘Either give me some breakfast or remind me to get breakfast.’
This is very simple advice that I have acted upon. Whenever I see John in school I make sure that he has had breakfast and check what time he went to bed. I have also asked his brother to keep an eye on him as well. When parents were shown the one-page profile there was an opportunity for John and his Form Tutor to discuss these issues and suggestions with them face to face.
Using John as an example, the one-page profile process has resulted in the school receiving some very important, yet simple information about a pupil. Parents, teachers and the pupil were then able to work together for a solution to the identified problem.
An example of how this one-page profile has helped Mark direct his own support. Ensuring that the people in his life are introduced to, and therefore connect with, his positive traits as well as understanding how best to work with him to do the things that he states as important.
Mark’s one-page profile
Mark is an intelligent 62 year old man who prefers to initiate conversation or physical contact with you. He will approach you if he wants to hug or talk to you. But he can become agitated if he’s not in the mood to interact. Mark sometimes uses Makaton (speech, signs and graphic symbols) to communicate but he’ll understand if you ask questions and use short sentences.
His one-page profile was developed to share basic snapshot information needed to support him in the best way possible because he has some behavioural patterns that can be avoided if the correct measures are followed. Whether at home or out and about, he prefers to be served food and drink before others and likes to have things done as quickly as possible. We provide support staff with more detail in his behavioural support plan.
Mark is not in contact with his family, so all decisions are made through his support workers, advocate and his Social Worker. This is also how we created his one-page profile.
All support staff, agency staff and relief staff have read the document. It is kept with Mark’s support plan and also on his bedroom door. The profile is updated every three months. It shares the things that people like and admire about Mark, such as his generosity, helpfulness, his sense of humour and the fact that he blames the cat for everything. As well as capturing the information people need to know to support him well, it also presents these positive attributes so that people can connect with Mark on a personal level.
All staff members are fully aware of Mark’s support needs after reading his full support plan. But Mark’s one-page profile has enabled support staff to really focus on what is important to him and the copy on his bedroom door constantly reminds them of this. For both Mark and his support workers this is a great help because it informs them of his weekly activities alongside his daily planner. It is extremely important to know how and when to initiate contact with Mark as this can determine Mark’s reaction and cooperation.
Overall the one-page profile has proven itself to be a great tool in providing as much information as possible about Mark in a very short but detailed document. It is very useful for relief/agency staff members who only have a limited amount of time to find out as much information as possible about Mark and to support him in the right way.
One-page profiles 