New Leaf: Living and Learning Together Inc.

Barrister Kingsley really knows his job, he is indeed tried and tested and he has proven to be capable. I highly recommend him.

Overall I can’t complain about New Leaf as far as a government subsidized home for people with extreme mental health issues. The only thing that bothers me is the contracting out of residential staff. It seems to me that the contracted staff really don’t care about the clients and only care about doing the bare minimum. I honestly think they only care about getting paid. My son has been here for almost 13 years and the turnover with staff is heartbreaking cause as soon the clients start to get to trust the new staff it’s time for the staff to move on and I can’t imagine the feeling of abandonment that my son and other clients must feel when they leave and it definitely doesn’t help their progress when they have to start learning to trust a new staff member who’s a complete stranger to them. Autistics need a lot of time before they start trusting anyone and unfortunately as soon as they do with the staff at New Leaf, the staff are transferred to somewhere else or promoted and the poor clients have to start learning to trust their replacement. It’s like 2 steps forward and 3 steps back. Unfortunately that’s the state of affairs with housing people with severe mental issues. Lack of funds hurts too. I’m giving New Leafs a 4 star review cause I’ve seen some of the other government run homes for people with autism and I wouldn’t let my cat live there. Overall they really try hard but their hands are tied to a certain degree by the union. But most staff genuinely care about the clients and New Leaf is the best long term care home for people with severe mental health problems who need chronic care that I’ve been able to find. There’s good and bad at every home for people like my son but New Leaf is among the best these days. BUT, they’re unionized so you’re ALWAYS gonna have people who take advantage of the union so they can slack off and be protected by the union. I’d be MUCH happier without the union and I was a union president (UFCW) in the 90s. Final comment: very good but plenty of room for improvement.

so thankful for this place...