HLINks - Launch of new APPG report tops this week’s essential news from the Housing LIN
Welcome to #Jeremytalks and my weekly piece to audio to coincide with our must-read weekly bulletin, HLINks, week-ending Friday, 19 February 2021.
This week we have been consumed by the launch of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Housing and Care for Older People Inquiry report on housing and living with dementia. Over 220 people attended the online event chaired by Lord Best and Peter Aldous MP and hosted by the Housing LIN. We were all inspired by author Wendy Mitchell, who had shared her own experience of dementia in her evidence to the Inquiry, as she told those watching, “if you get the housing right for people with dementia, you get it right for so many others”.
Written by the Housing LIN’s co-dementia lead, Katey Twyford, and Chief Executive, Jeremy Porteus, Housing for people with dementia – are we ready? is packed full of top tips, good practice and policy and funding recommendations, including reframing the original 10 HAPPI design principles for dementia-readiness.
In this week’s round up of other news from the Housing LIN, we also released a guest blog by Tetlow King Planning’s Managing Director, John Sneddon, on the recent government consultation so a National Draft Design Code and proposed reforms to the planning system
In this week’s HLINks, you can also take a tour of other news and events on later life housing and independent living with regard to homes and communities, health and social care, design and technology, planning matters and more, including two new reports relevant for our sector. The first is a discussion paper by SCIE on ‘Future options for housing and care’ and the second from the ILC-UK is entitled, ‘What we want: Future-proofing retirement housing in England’.
Check these out and register here to keep in touch with all our news alerts and other notifications of your choice, sent direct to your inbox. And remember you can also follow us via our Twitter feeds: @HousingLIN, @HousingLINews and @HLINConsult
Finally, if you would like to talk to us about any matters highlighted in this week’s issue, share learning about your work and/or discuss how you can engage our highly regarded consultancy services to assist you, email ‘Jeremy talks’ at: info@housinglin.org.uk
You can also listen to #Jeremytalks… here
Thanks for listening, stay connected and, above all, be safe during lockdown.
Jeremy
New Housing LIN Resources
New APPG report sets out how the housing sector must embrace dementia-readiness
This week saw the launch of the latest Inquiry report by the All Party Parliamentary Group on Housing and Care for Older People. ‘Housing for people with dementia – are we ready?’ pulls together the evidence presented to the Inquiry's expert panel, the research and analysis undertaken to understand the housing implications of people living with dementia and makes over 40 key policy and practice recommendations for making dementia-readiness happen, including new dementia-accessible HAPPI design principles.
Over 220 people attended the online launch introduced by Peter Aldous MP (APPG co-chair). We were all inspired by author Wendy Mitchell, who had shared her own experience of dementia in her evidence to the Inquiry, as she told those watching: “if you get the housing right for people with dementia, you get it right for so many others”.
You can now watch a recording of the launch event, and hear Wendy and further contributions from the APPG Inquiry Chair, Lord Best; and Inquiry Panel Members Jane Ashcroft, Anchor Hanover’s Chief Executive and sponsor of this Inquiry; Tom Redfearn from the Alzheimer’s Society’; and Professor Dawn Brooker from the University of Worcester and Director of the Association for Dementia Studies; and co-author of the report, the Housing LIN’s Jeremy Porteus. Click on the link below.
New Housing LIN guest blog sets out what the new planning consultation and design code proposals have in store
In his latest blog for the Housing LIN, John Sneddon, Tetlow King Planning’s Managing Director, talks about the proposed changes to the recent planning consultation from the specialist housing and care sector perspective.
Coronavirus Update
With a national lockdown in place, check out our Coronavirus Info Hub for the latest government guidance, a range of Housing LIN practice briefings for the sector and links to other useful information and websites.
Do also post any or reply to questions on our discussion forum. It allows you to share information, raise issues and ask questions to solve a tricky issue. For example, can you share your organisation’s COVID-19 risk plan or information about how you are engaging with residents remotely?
Housing, Community, Disability, and Ageing
Future options for housing and care
This discussion paper by SCIE is an initial paper from the Commission on the Role of Housing in the Future of Care and Support, and funded by the Dunhill Medical Trust, discussing housing that facilitates care and support for older people.
It aims to provide a short overview of the key issues facing the sector, an initial vision for the future and some preliminary ideas which the Commission believes merit further exploration.
It poses some questions which the Commission, including the Housing LIN, believes are critical for its remaining work to address.
What we want: Future-proofing retirement housing in England
The supply of retirement communities needs to be boosted by a third over the next 20 years to keep up with demographic change, according to latest research by the International Longevity Centre. The report makes the case that there remains significant scope for the sector to grow and to feature more prominently in the typical path through later life. In particular, it highlights a variety of trends that will shape how future demand for retirement communities may evolve over the next 20 years. These include: demographics, finances and consumer preferences.
Cabinet Office’s Disability Unit Survey
And remember, to help the government with understanding the barriers that disabled people face and what it may need to focus upon to improve the lives of disabled people, the Cabinet Office in preparing a National Strategy are seeking the views people with disabilities to know more about their experiences.
If you are a disabled person, a carer or parent or as someone who has an interest in disability issues, please complete the online survey. The survey will be open until 23 April 2021. Responses received before 13 February 2021 will inform the development of the National Strategy, while those received after this date used to inform its delivery. The survey is also available in other formats.
Manchester Metropolitan University ‘Rightplace’ survey
MMU are undertaking research into the housing preferences for the over 55’s across Manchester and want your assistance. This research will help support Local Authorities and housing providers to make better decisions about housing provision for people as they grow older.
Opinion pieces and blogs:
Design, Construction, Planning and Technology
Housing Design Awards 2021 – deadline extended
We are proud to sponsor these awards organised by Design for Homes and, in particular, draw attention to designing a range of HAPPI-inspired, beautifully designed housing that meets the needs and aspirations of an ageing population. Note that the closing date has been extended to 3 March 2021.
And to take inspiration from HAPPI and past winners, view our dedicated design hub webpage.
Health and Social Care, Mental Health and Learning Disability
Less than 6 months to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) – Are you prepared?
The UK government has introduced a new form of immigration status to enable eligible European Union citizens, European Economic Area citizens, or Swiss citizens currently living in the UK or resident in the UK before 31 Dec 2020, to stay in the UK after the end of the transitional withdrawal period on 30 June 2021.
For anyone who hasn’t yet seen this, the Home Office have produced a EUSS toolkit Local authority toolkit specifically aimed at Local Authorities.
And for more information, please visit the ADASS dedicated EUSS web page at: www.adass.org.uk/euss
We have also teamed up with ADASS to run a HAPPI Hour session for Housing LIN members on 11 March 2021.
Call for Report Evidence State of the Nation: The Social Care Challenge: Implementing a Connected System
Public Policy Projects is working on a major new report entitled, ‘State of the Nation: The Social Care Challenge: Implementing a Connected System’ and is looking for evidence and case studies by 26 March that illustrate examples of best practice at local level to deliver sustainable care services in three key areas:
- Innovation,
- Integration and
- Infrastructure (click for links).
Call for papers for Special Issue on Intermediate Care
The Journal of Integrated Care is preparing a Special Issue on Intermediate Care. Their call for papers is now open with submission deadline by 30 April 2021. For details on submitting a research paper, case study or review on your experience of designing, commissioning, delivering, enabling or evaluating transitional and intermediate care services, click on the link below.
Opinion pieces and blogs
- Following on from last week’s publication of the DHSC White Paper as reported in HLINks, the British Medical Journal has published a blog by Professor Sir Chris Ham, co-chair of the NHS Assembly and chair of the Coventry and Warwickshire Health and Care Partnership. The think-piece discusses the legislative proposals, the integration of both health and social care, and best practice examples from true integration between the two.
Housing and Dementia
Report Launch: Housing for people with dementia – are we ready?
Missed this? Watch and listen again to this week’s launch of the new APPG Inquiry report on housing and dementia here.
Dementia Heroes Awards 2021
Tunstall have teamed up with the Alzheimer’s Society to sponsor the Dementia Heroes Awards 2021. The awards will showcase the stories of people doing outstanding things to support people affected by dementia during the pandemic.
They will also recognise the inspirational achievements of those who care for people with dementia, those finding innovative solutions in research, and the campaigners and media fighting for the rights of people with dementia. The Dementia Heroes Awards ceremony will take place during Dementia Action Week 2021 (17th-23rd May) at a virtual ceremony on 20 May 2021.
Wales and Scotland
Wales
For Welsh government guidance on COVID-19, visit: https://gov.wales/coronavirus
Scotland
Scottish government guidance on COVID-19 can be found at https://www.gov.scot/collections/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance/
Events
Preparing our Spring HAPPI Hour series
We are now working on a new HAPPI Hour programme and look forward to sharing our full Spring schedule of webinars in the coming weeks. However, you can already sign up to upcoming HAPPI Hour sessions.
Next week, on Thursday, 25 February 2021 we will be exploring how community-led housing and cohousing schemes in England and Wales. In addition to researchers from the LSE and University of Bristol as well as the Wales Cooperative Centre, we are now joined by the Nationwide Foundation’s CEO, Leigh Pearce.
As highlighted earlier, we are also partnering ADASS to run a session on the EU Settlement Service and implications for the care sector on 11 March 2021.
And following the launch of the latest APPG Inquiry report, we are holding 2 HAPPI Hour sessions on design, and adaptations and technology. These are taking place on 22 April 2021 and 13 May 2021 respectively.
Other events supported by the Housing LIN
We are pleased to be involved in the following virtual events:
- SCIE webinar: Future options for housing and care - Monday 8 March 2021, 10.30 - 11.30 am
- CADR - Centre For Ageing & Dementia Research Conference 2021: A time of change; A time to change? - 23, 24 and 25 March 2021
- TSA's International Technology Enabled Care virtual conference - 22 to 25 March 2021
In next week’s HLINks
And, in next week's news, we look forward to our latest HAPPI Hour on community-led housing with Leigh Pearce, Nationwide Foundation’s CEO along with researchers from the LSE, University of Bristol and the Wales Cooperative Centre. To coincide with this HAPPI Hour, we will be publishing a new Housing LIN Viewpoint by Jim Hudson et al on their research and a Welsh guest blog by Claire White.
Lastly, the Housing LIN would like to thank Willmott Dixon for their support in producing this newsletter.