Currently an in-house training course will cost from £770 (plus the trainer’s expenses) per day for a group of 12 people. Depending on the course and the trainer, LAF may increase the numbers allowed on a course. Each extra participant is charged at £30 per day on top of the basic charge. For certain specialist topics the basic cost of the day's training may be higher than normal. LAF may be able to negotiate a reduction in cost for agencies that book multiple in-house courses.

LAF also provides representation for the supported housing sector.

LAF provides representation for the Supported Housing sector in Leeds through the Supporting People Provider Forum and is also co-ordinating the Housing Benefit Forum. Interested parties should look at the Leeds SPPF website, where they will find useful information. If they sign up to become a registered user they can join in the discussion fora on current topics of importance to the sector. All representation issues should be directed to the Director, Susan Cox.

Please have a look at our current rates by clicking here.

Currently the cost of LAF courses is £105 per day for Member agencies and £127 per day for Non-Member agencies for a one day course, and for a two day course £200 for Member agencies, and £226 for Non-Member agencies. For those interested in further savings, LAF produces Training Vouchers that are pre-paid passports to training. They currently cost £95 each for LAF Member Organisations and £117 each for Non-Member Organisations. They are cheaper than the normal rate for a course because they are bought in advance and they make the course administration much quicker and easier for LAF. The minimum purchase is five vouchers. Each voucher is valid for a single day’s training for one person. Vouchers allow organisations to buy training in advance at today’s prices and spend it at tomorrow’s. They help organisations to manage their training budget by getting a discount on training. The vouchers are time-limited for eighteen months.

Leeds Accommodation Forum is a membership organisation that exists to provide training, information, representation and to support the work of Voluntary Sector Housing Organisations in Leeds and West Yorkshire that provide care and support to single homeless people. The Forum is organised as an independent, representative collective of fully participating member organisations – appropriate to all levels of member, and grounded in meeting the real, individualised needs of service users. It is influential in Supported Housing in Leeds and Yorkshire. LAF is a registered charity and company limited by guarantee. At present there are 65 member agencies, of which approximately half are in full membership. All member agencies pay subscriptions. The Forum is run by a Board of Trustees of elected representatives from agencies which are full members. There are three paid staff. The Forum aims to: develop voluntary sector supported housing, become the voice of the voluntary sector and enhance co-ordination of Supported Housing Services.

The LAF Communications Worker looked into the information and communications needs of LAF’s members and found effective new ways of meeting them. So LAF now has the new look newsletter, a monthly e-newsletter, email Training Mailings, a redesigned Directory and a new look website. We are looking at ways in which LAF can interact more effectively with the sector and make sure that many more people are aware of issues and current problems. LAF is expanding its work and is working closely with Leeds City Council to provide training and information on specific areas of Supporting People. LAF has established a Supporting People Providers' Forum in co-operation with the Leeds Supporting People Team. This is to be cross-sector and aims towards inclusion, involvement, and the flow of information and ideas. LAF is expanding its area of influence and aims to become the organisation of first choice for Training, Information and Communication in Yorkshire and Humberside.

The LAF Newsletter, published triannually, and recently upgraded and given a whole new look, is a useful source of information for members. The newsletter currently contains articles on best practice, policy, training and news. It has a readership of over 1500 and is sent free to member organisations. The LAF Newsletter is supplemented by monthly e-briefings and email announcements. Interested individuals should sign up for the LAF e-Newsletter via this website. As another source of information LAF sends out a Training e-Newsletter and interested individuals can sign up for that at the same time they sign up for the LAF E-Newsletter. There is no charge for either the E-Newsletter or email update service.

During 2006/7 LAF mounted over 200 training courses at variety of venues, of which 130 were public training courses and the remainder, courses arranged in-house for various organisations in Leeds, Bradford, York and Sheffield. The courses are designed to provide basic and advanced support for housing support workers in an interesting and participatory way, using consultant trainers who have had significant experience in the supported housing sector. LAF training covers topics such as Keyworking, Welfare Benefits, Stress Management, Self-harm, Health Risk Management, Drugs, Conflict and Mental Health issues and many others. We run these courses at our own, air-conditioned, Training Suite in Munro House. A bi-monthly mailing, email updates and the Newsletter keeps members up to date on the training courses on offer, although LAF is willing to provide these details to non-members. LAF has a substantially subsidised rate for members compared to the rate for the training of non-member organisations. The most recent additions to the training list includes, Working with People with Debt, Protection from Abuse, Benefits for Offenders, Benefits for the Elderly, Understanding Dementia, Introduction to Supporting People and the QAF, Working with Sex Offenders, and Managing Stress. LAF is committed to provide the most useful, effective, up-to-date and value for money courses in the region.

Membership gives organisations a series of benefits: training costs are reduced by £20 per day per person, copies of the LAF newsletter are sent free of charge on publication to member organisations, providing a clear, readable source of information about issues confronting the Supported Housing Sector, newsletters are supplemented by e-Newsletters and e-briefings. Members also receive the Directory of Supported Housing free of charge on publication and have access to the online database of Supported Housing Organisations. Organisations are able to make their views known to regulatory bodies through LAF's representation activities such as the Supporting People Providers Forum (a combination of meetings and online information and discussions at www.sppf-leeds.org). LAF can answer questions and provide briefings on current topics of interest.