PBS In Practice
Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) is more than a toolkit, it’s a journey of empathy, learning, and growth. At Bright Futures, PBS underpins our support model, ensuring people with autism, learning disabilities and associated complex needs experience meaningful, person-centred care.
At its core, PBS is about improving quality of life. Behaviour is seen as communication of an unmet need and people may engage in more challenging forms of behaviour to get their needs met. We understand there is a higher likelihood of this due to increased sensitivity, communication impairments and cognitive delays.
However, PBS is about shifting the focus from ‘fixing’ people to supporting them better – with the word ‘positive’ taking a leading role. Our focus is understanding each individual’s communication preferences and creating the right environment, skills, and opportunities for them to thrive.
That’s why we use a three-tiered support system, led by our internal Specialist Support Team. This allows us to step-up or step-down the intensity of support based on individual needs, always with the aim of promoting independence, wellbeing, and choice.
The Outcomes – Patricks Journey
Patrick joined one of our adult homes after experiencing challenges in other settings. He was socially anxious, struggled with daily living tasks, and at times displayed behaviours of concern.
From the beginning, we used our Trauma-Informed PBS Model, Rooted in:
- Understanding Patrick’s life story and what it meant for his daily presentation.
- Establishing feelings of safety, security and stability.
- Building relationships at Patrick’s pace.
- Developing skills – supporting his communication and independence.
By introducing predictable routines and a consistent team, Patrick began building trusting relationships which over time, this led to fewer incidents of distress. With this foundation, we could then focus on developing his skills and independence.
Today, Patrick is more engaged, confident, and relaxed in his home. His quality of life continues to grow and now uses a bank of communication methods to get his needs met and to be more in control of his own life, making choices, sharing his aspirations, and getting the most out of each and every day.
This is PBS in action: not about “fixing” people, but about creating the right conditions for individuals to feel safe, valued, and empowered to thrive.
Read more about how we use PBS to support individual growth at Bright Futures by clicking the link here: Specialist Support | Bright Futures
