For Professionals
Partners in integrated care
We partner with the NHS, Local Authorities, and the voluntary sector.
Breaking down silos and delivering joined-up support across Housing, Mental Health, and Learning Disability.
Choose your path
For commissioners
Commissioning Southdown
Local Authorities, NHS, and Housing Developers. Strategic alignment, financial resilience, and proven social value.
For referrers
Make a referral
Social Workers, GPs, Mental Health Teams. Streamlined pathways for Housing, Mental Health, and Learning Disability services.
Partnerships & policy
Partnerships & policy
VCSEs, Policy Makers, System Leaders. How we champion the voluntary sector and shape system change across Sussex.
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people supported across Sussex each year
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years of specialist support
and care services
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tenant safety rating across our housing portfolio
For commissioners
Commissioning Southdown
Trusted to deliver specialist services since 1972. We offer the financial resilience of a regulated Housing Association combined with the specialist agility of a local support provider.
Why partner with us?
Breaking down silos
Our 2025-2030 Strategy is built on a refusal to accept fragmentation. We integrate Housing, Mental Health, and Learning Disability support to reduce pressure on statutory services and prevent crisis.
Evidence-based impact
We measure what matters. From our CQC-rated care services to our housing outcomes, we deliver proven social value across Sussex.
Financial flexibility
As an exempt charity and Registered Society, we reinvest our surpluses into service quality and asset development – a stable, value-driven alternative to private sector provision.
Strategic ambition
We are actively seeking partners to help deliver our five-year vision:
Expanding Housing Access
Developing new supported living properties across Sussex.
Enabling Independence
Transforming community care alongside the NHS.
Start a conversation
For tender enquiries, pilot projects, or strategic development, contact our Head of Business Development.
Emma McDermott
Head of Business Development
For referrers
Make a referral
We accept referrals from statutory teams, health professionals, and local authorities across Sussex. Each area of our work has a clear pathway to ensure the right support at the right time.
Specific eligibility criteria and referral forms are located on the individual service pages.
Housing Support & Homelessness
Services: Pathways Home (Prevention), Tenancy Sustainment, Outreach
Route: Most services require a referral via the Local Council Housing Needs Team
Mental Health Support
Services: Community recovery services, Discharge to Assess
Route: Referrals are primarily managed via UOK (Central Access Point) or Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
Learning Disability Support
Services: Supported Living, Positive Behaviour Support
Route: We accept nominations directly from Adult Social Care / Social Services
Complex Cases
If you are unsure which pathway fits your client's needs, contact our central team for signposting advice:
Partnerships & policy
System leadership
We believe the VCSE sector is essential to the health of Sussex. We use our influence to champion smaller organisations and ensure the voluntary sector has a seat at the strategic table.
As a lead provider, we operate at the heart of integrated care, collaborating within Neighbourhood Mental Health Teams (NMHTs) alongside the NHS and Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust (SPFT).
Mental Health Transformation
Neil Blanchard, Chief Executive
Neil represents the VCSE sector within the Sussex Health and Care Partnership, supporting the Mental Health Community Transformation Programme to move services toward joined-up, whole-population approaches. He chairs the Sussex Mental Health VCSE Strategic Leadership Group and is a founding member and Mental Health Strategic Rep for the East Sussex VCSE Alliance.
Housing Standards
Jim Aspdin, Director of Housing and Assets
Jim chairs the South East Supported Housing Group, working alongside the National Housing Federation to raise standards for supported housing providers across the region.
Commissioning Excellence
Neil Blanchard, Chief Executive
Neil serves on the Steering Group for the East Sussex VCSE Commissioning Excellence Programme, helping to develop the region as a centre of best practice for how statutory bodies and the voluntary sector commission and deliver services together.
Work with us
Better together
Whether through formal joint ventures, supply chain partnerships, or community collaborations, we know we are stronger together.
Community organisations
We lead diverse supply chains of smaller VCSE partners to deliver large-scale contracts across Sussex.
Community hubs
We share our spaces with grassroots groups to keep support local and embedded in communities.
Let's collaborate
Do you have an idea for a joint project or partnership? Get in touch with our Business Development team.
Emma McDermott
Head of Business Development
Ready to work with us?
Whether you're commissioning services, making a referral, or exploring a partnership - we'd love to hear from you.
More for tenants
We offer different types of support across Sussex.
Choose what fits your situation, or get in touch if you’re not sure.
Housing services
Support to find, keep, and sustain a home across Sussex.
Find housing supportMental health & employment
Community recovery, wellbeing, and employment support.
Find mental health supportLearning disability
Specialist care and supported living across East Sussex.
Find learning disability support