Choice, prevention and social inclusion
Imogen Parry, Director of Policy ERoSH and an independent sheltered housing consultant, comments on the DCLG's Supporting People consultation. This article first appeared in Inside Housing's Comment section.
ERoSH welcomes the recent reassurances in the preliminary conclusions of the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) consultation on the future of the Supporting People programme. In particular, we are pleased that ring fencing is likely to be retained. However, we continue to have concerns relating to choice, prevention and social inclusion.
The DCLG summary of responses to the Supporting People consultation states that "many people say that sheltered housing is right for them and they want the choice to live in sheltered housing." There is no indication, however, of whether the government intends to give a strong lead to local authorities to encourage the retention of this choice. Many Supporting People teams favour lettings only to those with assessed support needs. But some older people make a positive choice to move into sheltered housing before they have support needs as a preventative step. They believe, rightly in our view, that moving into sheltered housing can help to prevent hospital or residential care admission, falls, depression, social isolation, loneliness and anxiety. The high impact, low cost of scheme managers’ support directly contributes to this range of preventative outcomes.
A prime focus of Supporting People teams is the costs and benefits of staff support. The benefits of the unpaid and invisible support that sheltered housing tenants give to each other is unrecognised, as is the enhanced opportunity for families to continue to support their relatives. Opportunities for mutual tenant support are particularly high when lettings are made to a wide range of people (ie. with high, medium, low and no support needs) enabling balanced and inclusive communities.
The DCLG summary of responses states that people told them that sheltered housing "gives them a sense of community" and that they value accommodation-based support, particularly "the companionship and mutual support aspects". Good sheltered housing is a supportive community both to those who live there and to isolated older people living nearby. ERoSH would therefore like guarantees that the proposed new statutory duty to provide support will cover the low level preventative support provided in sheltered housing, as well as "the most disadvantaged and at risk of social exclusion."
Last October, the Audit Commission's report on the Supporting People programme stated that "sheltered housing, associated wardens and alarm schemes are a major resource but in too many areas there is no clear strategy about how best to use either the buildings and equipment or the associated staff to meet current and future needs." ERoSH supports this view wholeheartedly and encourages central government and local Supporting People, health, care and voluntary sector staff to work with providers to fulfil the unmet potential of sheltered housing.
Contact Imogen Parry on 01920 870384 or 07774 838825
Email: imogen.parry@btopenworld.com
