Making HAPPI Happen
ERoSH's director of policy Imogen Parry joined leading figures at a ‘Question Time' style debate to consider how we house our ageing population.
The Making HAPPI Happen event gave housing and development workers the opportunity to discuss the challenge of implementing the vision framed by HAPPI - Housing our Ageing Population: Panel for Innovation.
HAPPI has gathered good practice from across Europe and put together new and creative proposals to help put the UK at the forefront of housing for older people. It was commissioned by Communities and Local Government (CLG) in partnership with Department of Health to set up the innovation panel, as part of CLG's commitment outlined in ‘Lifetime Homes, Lifetime Neighbourhoods: A National Strategy for Housing in an Ageing Society', published by CLG in 2008.
The panel has now reported to government some recommendations to help ensure that future housing will create sustainable and inclusive homes and neighbourhoods which our ageing population want and can afford to live in.
At the Question Time HAPPI event Imogen summarised the key points from the HAPPI report that are relevant to ERoSH. These included:
• The HAPPI aspirations may get lost with the new Government's agenda of cuts to public expenditure and how ERoSH can play an important part reinforcing the HAPPI message that housing is integral to older people's care
• The changing and diverse range of housing aspirations of older people's needs to be reflected in government policy
• There is an unknown level of knowledge and commitment to older people's housing by the new CLG and Department of Health ministers
• The need to reiterate the cost effective nature of specialist housing for older people.
Imogen reported back on her attendance at the HAPPI event at a recent Collaboration and Development committee meeting held in London. You can view the minutes of the meeting.
