As we have recently opened our second children’s residential care home – Juno Wallasey – we sat down with our Support Services Manager, Paul, to look back on the journey of getting here. The story is illustrated with some before and after shots from the home.
How did the Juno Wallasey journey start?
The journey of Juno Wallasey started with a partnership with Regenda – they became one of our key property partners at the end of 2021, supporting us in opening children's homes in Liverpool City Region. The search for the right property took quite some time – we viewed 19 properties before finding exactly what we were looking for in the summer of 2022 - a building in a nice residential area with great transport links that we could renovate and turn into a warm, welcoming home for children. Care-experienced young people have greatly informed the “must-have” list of what sort of properties we might look for – the location, the amenities like en-suite bedrooms, spaces to spend time together but also have privacy.
My main takeaway from this part of the journey is definitely the importance of relationships for the long term; it’s great to find a partner like Regenda who share our values and vision.
Once the home was secured, how did the renovations go?
There were a few changes we wanted to make to the property to make sure it fits the vision we created with care-experienced young people in the early stages of Juno. It was important that all bedrooms would be ensuite, and that the kitchen and dining areas would be merged to create a more open, welcoming space.
The renovation took longer than expected, as these things always seem to do. It wasn’t until midway through the renovation that structural problems on the top floor were discovered, which caused us to stop and start the work a few times. Of course, you don’t know what you don’t know, so in this stage we very much had to keep calm and address the problems we discovered, accepting delays as part of the process. The delays were frustrating, but the end result is a beautiful house we’re really proud of.
And how did you turn the house into a home?
Our Experts by Experience were heavily involved in choosing the interior decor, the colour schemes, furniture and wallpapers. We wanted to make sure the communal spaces are welcoming and soothing, leaving the bedrooms a bit more minimalist so that children could personalise them when they move in and settle to make it their own space. Milexa Group kindly supported us by donating beautiful wallpaper to make the lounges and dining room more stylish with feature walls throughout the home.
There were lots of people supporting us at this stage – Watts and Regenda did volunteer work clearing the patio and garden area, and the John Lewis Liverpool store donated lots of beautiful rugs. Andy Murray, one of our backers, provided some of the furniture, and our insurance broker, PIB, gave a PlayStation, whilst the construction partner M&Y Maintenance & Construction donated brand new musical instruments for the children. It’s beautiful to see the generosity and support of the people and organisations we work with; these contributions are a huge help in making the vision Juno Wallasey a reality.
Aside from the physical space, we were busy setting up policies and procedures and looking for brilliant people to join the team. Lisa, the Manager at Juno Wallasey, started back in the autumn of 2023, and since then we recruited a brilliant team with lots of caring, passionate people. The Care team completed lots of training and had time to bond as a team and spend time together before the home opened.
Overall, it was a long journey, but absolutely worth the wait. It’s the right partner, the right area, the right property, the right team.
If you’d like to be a part of Juno, take a look at our vacancies here.
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