Further Recovery Star Developments

MHPF is undertaking development work on the Recovery Star which is designed to address some of the limitations of using the Star in secure and high care settings. So far MHPF has developed and piloted a variant in conjunction with St Andrew’s Healthcare, NHS North Yorkshire and York and InMind. MHPF and Triangle Consulting are now taking this forward with new collaborators in order to produce a final version of the new tool.

The original Recovery Star does not fully capture what change and progression may mean for people within long term secure settings. It is designed to assess progress towards self-reliance which may be an unrealistic or distant goal in such settings. Neither does it address some of the specific issues to do with risk and vulnerability.

The Recovery Star – for Secure and High Care Settings

The new tool retains a sense of progression through use of a Ladder/Pathway of Change. The end point, however, emphasises supporting people on the journey towards a less intensive form of support. The ten areas correspond more closely to what service users say is important to them within secure and high care services.

In particular the safety and vulnerability dimension captures issues related to risk, both to self and others, and provides staff and service users with a shared language for discussing these in relation to mental health and well-being. The ‘Work’ dimension has been replaced with ‘Meaningful activity’. There is a recognition that in addition to other links with friends and family, the quality of placement relationships can either aid or hinder individuals in their recovery journey. The final product would retain both the key-working and outcomes’ properties of the first version and continue to support recovery focused practice within mental health services.