Lifeways Community Care, the UK’s leading provider of supported living for people with complex needs, is delighted to announce that it will be sponsoring the Best Commissioner Award at the highly prestigious Independent Specialist Care Awards.

The Awards will take place at the London Marriott Hotel Grosvenor Square on 15 March 2011 and will include a gala dinner supported and attended by commissioners and policy makers at the highest level.

The event will provide an opportunity to celebrate the achievements of excellence and initiative within the independent healthcare sector.

The Best Commissioner Award is open to any local authority, NHS or joint commissioner or commissioning team of publicly funded social care for learning or physically disabled adults or those with mental health problems.

As Paul Marriner, Chief Executive, Lifeways comments, “We are thrilled to be able to sponsor such a key award which recognises the proactive, effective and innovative commissioning policies the nominees have made for specialist social care services”.

The objectives of the Independent Specialist Care Awards are to highlight the range of business achievements, professional skills, management leadership and spirit of enterprise among independent sector providers of social care services for adults with learning or physical disabilities or mental health problems from care homes to supported living and homecare, and to pay tribute to those individuals and teams who have demonstrated outstanding excellence in their fields of work.

Established in 1995, Lifeways (www.lifeways.co.uk) offers care and support to people with complex needs, including individuals with learning disabilities, autism, challenging behaviour, mental health issues and acquired brain injuries, in their own home or a community setting.

Lifeways was voted Specialist Care Provider of the Year 2010 at the Health Investor Awards 2010.