1. Janet Sutherland 4 th February 2011

2. Advantages and disadvantages of downsizing Barriers to moving to general and specialist Challenges of the housing market Provision of care and support, personalisation Issues: ownership, social and market rent General needs and specialist provision Reductions in Housing Benefit,Local Housing Allowances, Supporting People and care Opportunities – localism – baby boomers Identify some solutions and ways forward

3. Downsizing to “stay younger longer” We are at a critical time – “perfect storm”: Exponential increase in older people  Budget pressures The case for “invest to save” Need new solutions: more options for downsizing, new ways of funding housing schemes, and care and support Maintain funding: adaptations for staying put and modernisation of existing schemes

4.  Responses to Housing LIN request  Consultations / meetings  Desktop review of literature and best practice  Seminars  Viewpoint 17 General needs – Dec 2010  Viewpoint on Specialist - Feb 2011 in Housing Lin enews

5. Number of over 65’s expected to double in next 15 years – extra 2.4m households Public spending on care services may double next 15 years Now:40% of total hospital and community health cost of £32 billion is spent on the 65+ By 2025 over 1 million may have dementia By 2041 twice as many older disabled people. By 2036 an additional 2.3m people over 85 : increase of 184%.

6.  Care and health savings achieved by housing support  Examples of holistic Housing Options  Examples health benefits from specialist schemes  Join housing, care and health services and budgets.  Push and pull factors of downsizing  BUT –shortage of suitable, attractive, affordable homes in all tenures, general needs and specialist schemes, limits the options for moving

7. Encourage people, in their 50’s & 60’s, to assess the suitability of their home to support them as they age, with an easy to use Toolkit: How accessible is it? Will adaptations be practical and affordable? Will it be affordable to heat and repair? Assess strength of tie to the home and location What are realistic and affordable options for moving? Make a housing plan, and decide when to implement it. To stay and adapt, or to split the home, or have a HomeShare, or to move at a certain time, to general or specialist housing? Consider how to help people do this forward thinking Publicise it widely Empower people to make own decisions

8.  Across all sectors need joined up LA strategies, addressing needs of older and disabled people– engage them in planning  Strategies should encourage active ageing  Planning is barrier to provision & overcomplicated for specialist schemes. It needs to include older people’s needs.  New homes can be more expensive  Invest in existing homes too

9. Most underoccupation in private sector £1 trillion equity with older people Huge market opportunity – 75% owners Encourage private housing developers to build for older people, in general needs and specialist schemes, recognising and addressing risks. Encourage provision of suitable homes in all developments – design criteria Promote innovation – European models from HAPPI, co-housing

10. Develop new models of equity release Explore new funding/ tenure models such as Shared Ownership to help many with insufficient equity in existing home, e.g. ex Right To Buy Need new models to purchase existing home where market collapsed, and help with move e.g. Rent to Buy  Need solutions wherever is need (North etc) – not just in high value areas

11.  Intense competition -demand grows, less supply  Impact of reduction in HCA grant on supply  Exclude downsizers from sub market rent relets?  Overcrowding – pressure to downsize  Choice Based Lettings insensitive to older people  Inadequate supply of suitable attractive homes  Much of sheltered housing needs remodelling  New models of funding required to retrofit existing, and build new homes  Need new partnerships to address these challenges  Supporting People and care budget reductions

12.  The private rented sector is growing, and more people will grow old in it  Potential for increased role in specialist ?  Issues of insecurity and affordability  Reductions to HB and LHA will cause some to move  Landlords can be reluctant to allow adaptations  In later life, renting specialist housing may be better than buying  For the “trapped middle” -role for wider range of intermediate homes, and flexible tenures (rent to buy etc) and shared equity. Staircasing down in  shared ownership

13.  Specialist schemes often built to high density on “brownfield sites” in existing communities – so fewer family homes on “greenfield” required.  Sheltered and Extra Care models will change to be less institutional  Elderly villages: mixed tenure and mixed frailty, are popular and have impressive results  Challenge to maintain mixed tenure & support  How do we ensure the ongoing viability of the model with little HCA grant and State funded care?  Can Big Society, Localism, social enterprise, Community Development Trusts etc help?

14. Can be problematic in all tenures Ownership – where market collapse hard to sell - Shortage of mortgages - Complexity is daunting for older people - need help such as sale package from developer Social rent – a chain of 5 may be involved. Works best where local authority values released family unit highly Private rent – may be no one to help. HB, LHA reductions may require move to a new area.

15.  Unprecedented pressures on all revenue and capital budgets  Reductions in HB and LHA, SP and Care  Increasing energy, food, transport and VAT costs  Pension pressures and less investment income Can the “ Big Society” compensate, gathering the energy of our “young old” to build social capital in new ways? Can “ Localism” encourage volunteering and social enterprise to take on the role of service providers?  New funding models are urgently needed

16. New generation “young old” – new aspirations Engage with developers – market opportunity Integrate schemes in communities, build social capital Embrace diversity - plan to meet needs of all Engage elderly and “young old” in dynamic consultation and community planning Encourage Assistive Technology and Telecare Establish Homeshare models, fund Staying Put Challenge perceptions, think differently

17.  People want independent living, flexible support, security and integration  The new model may be “ Care ready homes” provided in general needs or specialist schemes, which can start at 20 flats  Need rural solutions – Community Right to Build?  Personalisation and reductions in SP and care require less institutional staff and services  Specialist -small multi purpose communal room, more self organised activities  Lower service charges

18. 1. Embrace the opportunities of a new generation of baby boomers, wanting independence 2. Make the “invest to save” case 3. Promote “Home for Life” toolkit, leading to a personal plan to stay or move 4. Develop a wider range of attractive and affordable housing options in all tenures – general and specialist 5. Address minority needs

19. 6. Downsizing is not for all: choice not compulsion 7. Adopt positive phrases for downsizing. 8. “Localism” to create communities that work for all - lifetime neighbourhoods. 9. Local authorities working in joined up local partnership including planning – Total Place 10. Involve older people at every stage of planning and “young old” to future proof schemes

20. To encourage more to downsize, we need support, incentives AND Range of suitable, attractive and affordable schemes, general and specialist New funding models for releasing equity for purchase of home and/or support & care New ways of funding affordable rent New models for the disabled and those with dementia There will not be enough homes for all who could downsize – lets concentrate on those who wish to – no compulsion.

21. Your views please:  Are these the right themes?  Which are the most urgent?  Solutions and ideas?  What next? Many thanks Views to: jehsutherland@googlemail.com