CREST Team Case Study - Matt Faragher

Matt is a Practice Development Lead at CREST

What does your role entail?

I focus on supporting team practice, developing skills and knowledge and helping to induct new team members. I will also have a role in auditing documentation and evaluating processes to ensure high standards of service delivery and best practice.

My previous role would involve planning visits and community support for my own caseload and supporting my colleagues to do the same with theirs. On a day-to-day basis this would include visits to people’s homes and supported community settings, liaising with community resources and supporting referrals to them on behalf of my clients and most importantly helping people to stay well.

What’s your background?

I trained as a mental health nurse 2002 – 2005. I worked in a third sector nurse-led accommodation service for people excluded from other accommodation providers for 13 years, including team lead and service manager roles. I moved to the NHS in 2019, joining the Assertive Outreach team. In summer 2021 I joined the CREST team.

What brought you to CREST?

I have had lots of experience of supporting clients from long periods of admission in long periods of admission in local rehab and complex rehab hospital settings into a community placement. I therefore had a good awareness of the issues of these transitions. I had also developed my own skills and experience in community Care co-ordination working in the Assertive Outreach team. CREST seemed a good opportunity to combine these two areas.

What interests do you have outside work?

I used to play in a couple of bands before my children came along – I think this experience has helped me in several areas of my work, not least public speaking and giving presentations to our team. I also try to cycle as much as possible and have previously completed the ‘coast to coast in a day’ and Liverpool-Leeds Canal rides to raise some money for charity. I was also once involved in filming a piece for BBC1’s “The One Show” talking about E-bikes with broadcaster John Sergeant.