Retirement Housing in the UK in Cambridgeshire in Cornwall in Devon in Dorset in Essex in Hampshire in Hertfordshire in Oxfordshire in Somerset in Surrey in West Midlands in Wiltshire

Sheltered Housing schemes and options

Sheltered housing is often called retirement housing or warden-assisted housing. There are many different types of sheltered or retirement housing schemes, both to rent and to buy. Schemes usually consist of between 15 and 60 dwellings which may be bedsits, self contained flats, bungalows or luxury apartments. Usually they are designed with older people in mind and to mobility standards, for wheelchair access for example.

Some schemes are simply housing designed to meet the needs of older people and linked to a community alarm. But the majority of schemes have a Scheme Manager (or ‘Warden’) as well as a community alarm service. There are often communal facilities such as a lounge, laundry, guest flat and garden. Meals are not normally provided but a very few schemes include a restaurant, and quite a number arrange one hot meal a day. There is usually a minimum age, often 55 or 60, but occasionally 50.

Sheltered or retirement housing appeals to people who like living independently but want the reassurance of knowing that assistance is on hand if there is an emergency.

Scheme Manager (Warden)

The scheme manager/warden is usually expected to:

• Get to know older people living in their scheme; giving them information on availability and access to services and encouraging them to ask for additional support from statutory and voluntary organisations when appropriate. When in the building the scheme manager will also respond to the emergency alarm.
• Manage the scheme, e.g. looks after the maintenance of the communal areas.

However, the scheme manager is employed by the management organisation and the duties vary considerably between schemes. Some have a resident manager/warden and a 24- hour service; others have visiting or part time staff.

The scheme manager/warden is NOT expected to provide personal care for residents, nor to carry out tasks like shopping or cleaning. The scheme manager/warden’s salary and overheads account for a large part of the service

support charges paid by both tenants and owner-occupiers.

Community alarms

• Offer reassurance that help is at hand if needed
• By pressing a button on a pendant or pulling a cord, a message is relayed to a monitoring centre, staffed 24 hours a day
• If help is needed the centre will alert relatives or friends, or contact your doctor or the emergency services.
• Alarm Systems are often used to provide assistance when the scheme manager/warden is not on duty or not in the scheme.

Is It Right For You?

There are some important issues to consider when deciding whether sheltered or retirement housing is right for you. These included:

• if you need additional support or services, is it possible to organise them in your current home?
• how do you feel about moving into smaller accommodation, the possibility of having to buy smaller furniture, getting rid of possessions and the loss of a private garden?
• how do you feel about living in accommodation exclusively occupied by older people?
• if you are considering moving to a new area, are you moving away from friends, family and surroundings you know well?
• although you will want to discuss this with loved ones, make sure the final decision is yours. Moving to please someone else is not a good idea.

Choosing a scheme

Once you have decided to move to sheltered/retirement housing, you will need to consider which features are important to you. It is advised to visit several schemes and meet the scheme manager/warden and other residents. You may want to consider: location, local facilities and transport, communal facilities, whether pets are allowed, design and accessibility of the building, noise, security, whether there is a residents/tenants association, cost of rent/service/support charge, whether the cooker and fridge is provided, what kind of heating system is there and how it is controlled and what will happen if you become frail and need help with domestic tasks and personal care.

Finding a scheme

Phone EAC’s free Advice Line on 020 7820 1343, search directly on-line at www.housingcare.org

or email at enquiries@eac.org.uk

Renting

Most housing for rent is provided by local councils or nonprofit making housing associations (often called Registered Social Landlords or RSL’s). Local councils and RSL’s generally aim to offer their housing to people in the greatest housing need, at rents which are affordable - perhaps with the help of housing benefits. The criteria that applicants are generally expected to show include:

• Some degree of housing need because of the physical condition of their present home;
• Medical and/or social reasons for wanting to move, e.g. poor health, disabilities, loneliness, fear or isolation from friends & family;
• That they are not easily able, for whatever reason, to buy rather than rent;
• That (if they are not local already) they have good reason for wanting to move to the area they apply for.

In most parts of the country, councils and RSL’s receive applications from more people than they can assist. The cost of renting will be made up of a rent plus service, a charge to cover the services provided. Service charges in the majority of ordinary sheltered or retirement schemes is in the range of £20 to £40 a week. People wanting to rent sheltered housing and who have a low income should contact local authority to check their eligibility for housing benefit.

Buying

You may also consider purchasing property. Prices and types of property vary enormously. A small second-hand flat may be found for under £70,000 in parts of the country. Brand new properties cost more. Luxurious homes on sites with every amenity - swimming pools, golf courses and restaurants - can cost well into six figures.

Service charges are likely to apply as will ground rent which could vary from £50 per year to £300. Optional home care and meal services will normally be charged for separately if they are privately provided.

©Elderly Accommodation Counsel (EAC). Visit www.housingcare.org, or call 020 7820 1343.