The Older People’s Housing Taskforce has published its recommendations to the government, aimed at enabling the delivery of more homes for elderly people.
The task force’s recommendations include establishing a specialist unit to drive the delivery of age-friendly homes. It said ministers should set up a joint unit between the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and the Department of Health and Social Care to create a plan of action.
Other recommendations include revisions to the National Planning Policy Framework, for the government to conduct assessments of housing need for older people, and to set a target of 10% of delivery through the Affordable Homes Programme for older people’s housing.
In response to the report, the British Property Federation said, according to its figures, the UK needs 50,000 specialist homes per year “to meet the needs of an ageing population, yet current delivery falls woefully short at just 7,000 annually”.
Theo Plowman, assistant director of policy at the BPF, said: “This report makes clear that without renewed and bold energy in housing policy, we risk failing to meet the needs of older people today and in the future. We have emphasised that national and local planning systems must enable greater volumes of age-appropriate housing.
“We welcome the drive to build trust among older people and their families. Transparency around fees, charges and options is vital to fostering confidence in age-appropriate housing. We will also be looking to explore a fairer, more effective leasehold system for older people alongside the government.
“The government must seize this moment to act decisively. This report provides a road map to addressing the long-standing challenges, but its success depends on structures that translate ambition into delivery. The opportunity to make transformational change for older people is here, and must be treated with the same ambition within the government’s housing strategy.”
The report was also supported by Emma Webster, chair of industry body the Retirement Housing Group. She said: “By urging the need for planning reforms that actively incentivise housing for older people and a national housing strategy for an ageing population, this report has set out immediate practical steps and a longer-term policy direction that will help address the chronic and long-standing undersupply of specialist housing for older people.
“The UK has an ageing population for which much of our housing stock is simply not fit for purpose. When people downsize into retirement housing, we know they are less likely to be lonely and more likely to have greater peace of mind, safe in the knowledge that they can retain their independence but help is on hand should it be needed. In turn, it is also the case that when people downsize, older, second-hand properties are released back onto the market, helping younger generations up the housing ladder.
“This report charts a path to helping the UK achieve the vast health, social and economic benefits that come from retirement housing becoming a more established and accessible part of the housing journey, and we urge the government to act promptly on its findings.”
The government has also been urged by lobby group the Housing and Ageing Alliance to “move quickly” to implement the recommendations of the Older People’s Housing Taskforce.
HAA chair Mario Ambrosi said: “Publication of the task force’s report is a hugely important step forward in addressing the urgent need for more appropriate housing for our ageing society. HAA members worked closely with the taskforce, and it is very welcome that many of our asks are reflected.
“Having a target of 10% of delivery through the Affordable Homes Programme for older people’s housing could make a real difference for the many thousands of people who would like to move but are unable to do so because of a lack of options. So too could the focus on ensuring that planning guidance encourages delivery.
“We were also pleased to see the emphasis in the report on the need for information, advice and advocacy around housing and care options in later life.”
In addition, John Tonkiss, chief executive of retirement housing provider McCarthy Stone, said: “This report is the blueprint for providing the safe, secure, accessible and affordable housing that our rapidly ageing population needs. Millions of older people are unable to move from their existing homes into something better suited to their needs because there are so few options for them to move to. This blocks the housing ladder, creates issues in the NHS and social care system and stymies economic investment.”
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