Vision and values

Arch Health CIC exists to explore every opportunity to improve the health and well-being of people without a secure home in Brighton and Hove. We are committed to this because periods of homelessness can have a devastating impact on a person’s life and we believe that excellent, caring, primary health care can prevent long term suffering and save lives.

This vision is achieved through the entire Arch team living our values every day, in our interactions with our patients, partners and each other. This has enabled us to build up a strong and supportive, and now award-winning workplace culture. Just one of the many reasons you might want to have a look to see if we have any current vacancies.

• Equality and Fairness: health equality is our cornerstone; Arch Healthcare aims to provide the very highest levels of healthcare for those going through the very hardest of times. We hold a rare outstanding rating from the CQC across all areas of our service. Because health equality brings benefits to us all.
• Kindness and humanity: we hold a yearly remembrance service to mark the lives of those who have died whilst facing homelessness in Brighton & Hove. This is a chance to acknowledge & celebrate the lives of those who were too often overlooked during their lifetimes.
• Collaboration and Community: strong partnerships across the city enable us to achieve so much for our patients. A partnership with YMCA Downslink has enabled us to provide the Step Down beds service, offering clinically supported accommodation for people leaving hospital, so they can recovery properly, in suitable and safe accommodation.
• Honesty and integrity: We are uncompromising in our work, providing an honest voice even when this feels uncomfortable. This has led to Arch holding leadership positions in city wide initiatives. For example, we chair Fortnightly Multi-Agency Homeless Health Meetings (MAHHM) supporting patients with multiple complex challenges.
• Excellence and curiosity: we are part of a nationally important service improvement project, Common Ambition, funded by The Health Foundation, which is using co-production to generate city-wide system change. Common Ambition steering group members are people with current or very recent lived experience of homelessness and are they breaking new ground in trauma-informed, person-centred service redesign. We also take the lead in sharing our clinicians’ expertise on homeless health, for frontline workers in Brighton and beyond. We hold regular online homeless health tutorials, and run a yearly homeless health conference, bringing together people in the sector to connect and network, and also hear from leading voices across the city and beyond. We cover a range of topics (focus on health conditions, suicide prevention, grounding techniques, autism, paranoia, social care, co-production)

Mahatma Ghandi once said “A nation’s greatness is measured by how it treats its weakest members.” At Arch we believe this measure is also true of a city – our city – Brighton & Hove.

ARCH stands for Accessible Restorative Community Health. The name reflects the belief of the team that primary care should move way beyond the treatment of symptoms into community oriented care which focuses on the whole person and promotes restoration, wellness and resilience.

ACCESSIBLE is not simply about an open door, simple registration and a flexible appointment system, though those are important. It’s about a professional, welcoming and non-judgemental culture amongst our entire team so that people who may struggle to access formal services are able to visit their GP with confidence and receive the treatment which they need.

RESTORATIVE is the recognition that each person is a unique and complex individual and is always more than a presenting health issue. Arch will always seek, as far as is possible, to gain an understanding of the whole person and help them to aim for the best possible physical and mental health outcomes.

COMMUNITY is key to every person’s health and wellbeing. Not every problem can be addressed through a consultation with the doctor or nurse, the prescription pad cannot replace our need for positive interactions with fellow human beings. Arch recognises that many, many local groups, organisations, businesses and people play a critical role in the health of our people.

HEALTH is our business, our aim is improving the health of the poorest fastest through outstanding specialist health care and through proactive engagement with the wider community. We believe that homeless people should have access to healthcare which is at least as good as that which is provided for the rest of the population.