Opened by entrepreneur Kate Stewart Vitality Homes will provide accommodation and 24-hour support for people who have overcome addiction and have a record of abstinence

Liverpool entrepreneur Kate Stewart says her accommodation and support centre for people recovering from addiction will welcome its first residents this week.

Vitality Homes in Wavertree Road will provide accommodation and 24-hour support for people who have overcome addiction and have a record of abstinence and will focus on helping to integrate those people back into society through supported living.

When Ms Stewart, whom also owns the Sandon Hotel close to Liverpool FC, first announced her plans for the centre earlier this year, there was some opposition from the local community.

However, she insists the community is now supportive of the project, saying people had offered to host cooking classes at Vitality Homes and bake fresh scones for the residents.

Having personally experiencing the devastating effects of substance abuse and alcoholism within her family, she embarked on creating Vitality Homes. She believes that while there are numerous places for rehabilitation and helping people to initially become sober, once they have completed the first programme there isn’t always enough support to ensure they stay committed to their sobriety.

Vitality Homes’ head of service, Jacquie Johnston Lynch, brings significant experience within the industry and has been working to involve the wider community, answering any of their questions and building relationships to create a broad mix of activities that service users can take part in.

She said: “We’re really excited to welcome our first set of residents and have created mini programmes for them so that they feel connected and have a sense of belonging. The building is almost ready and is complete with communal areas and individual bedrooms to ensure that our guests have a balance between their independence and socialising with others.

“We will encourage our residents to lead active lives and we will be supporting them to take active roles within the community and to attend theatre trips and cycling activities to name a few, and we want to be really involved with anything going on in the area.”