Research into the changing housing needs and demands of older adults

Chris Paris, Emeritus Professor of Housing Studies, University of Ulster

Visiting Fellow, FIHURE, Flinders University

Public presentation, Tuesday 20 October 2009Radford Auditorium, Adelaide

Introduction

Seminar is about processes & initial results Ongoing collaborative work

Working with Northern Ireland Housing Executive (NIHE) NIHE: strategic housing agency with research functions 3-year research programme on older people’s housing

Research aims to: Provide a comprehensive assessment of current provision Determine the adequacy of this provision Identify new accommodation models/services Assess overall policy implications

Context: housing provision & policy

UK housing system changed substantially since 1960s High point of public housing intervention in the 1970s Subsequent privatisation & deregulation

Home ownership well over 70% of households by 2007

Northern Ireland: a distinctive regional setting Contested constituent part of the UK: 30-years of ‘Troubles’ Emerged from intense social conflict in the late 1990s Late but very rapid growth in home ownership

Similarities/differences NI and South Australia Sub-national jurisdictions but different constitutional bases Similar population sizes & peripheral economic status Both within affluent countries with ageing populations

Belfast looking south from Black Mountain: just another city

Source: Google Earth

Source: Brendan Murtagh

A ‘peace wall’ in west Belfast

Source: CAIN

Loyalist wall mural, Belfast

"Slan Abhaile” - “Safe Home" Source: CAIN

Republican mural, Short Strand

City of Derry (aka Londonderry): the Maiden city

Source: Google Earth

Young petrol bomber with gas mask Civil rights protestors running from CS gas

Republican murals, Bogside, Derry

Source: Google Earth

Mural in the Fountain, Londonderry

Background to our NI research

Widespread concern about ageing population Older people certain to be increasing % of population What overall implications for housing provision & policy? Specific concerns about older people’s housing needs Growing body of evidence-based research (AP-funded)

HE contracted an initial scoping study Extensive consultations with key players to define key issues Older people not a homogeneous group Increasing life expectancy & independence for longer ‘Compression of morbity’: intense health care issues at older age Disaggregated nature of service provision and hospital discharges Housing needs changing: current needs may differ from future needs

The scoping study: housing issues

Help & support for independence in own home What scope for provision of more electronic assistive technology? Issues related to fear of crime and safety in the home Ability to maintain home to decent standard

Suitability of accommodation Issues of under-occupancy, especially in social housing Suitability of sheltered housing & retirement villages

Isolation as a key issue, not just ‘rural’ areas Issues relating to mobility & access to services

Financial issues associated with old age Asset rich/income poor: equity release options RTB in social housing sector Move from owner occupation to supported social sector

Changing housing issues: HAs

Distinctive role of housing associations (HAs) in NI Smaller & more specialised sector than GB

Strong focus on ‘sheltered housing’ HAs had links with either ‘side’ in NI Easy access to funding:

Crude HAG allocation for sheltered housing Unrestricted asset disposal for new tenants

Changing housing issues: HAs

Changing role of HAs over last 10 years Falling popularity of HA sheltered schemes (esp. 1-beds) Switch to ‘mixed funding’ (end of 100% HAG) Now only provider of new social housing Common selection scheme for social housing: based on ‘need’ High % allocations to homeless, sole parents, young & singles

Impact of Supporting People programme on funding Funding allocation should reflect need providers preferences Though ‘homeless due to unsuitable accommodation’

High % of over-60s in HAs now reflects past not future There was a higher % social overall & lower % OO pre-RTB Now higher % of those entering old age are home owners Housing assets but incomes < inflation despite growing

maintenance costs & rates Overall: changed context & policy agenda

1990s sheltered housing, Belfast

1990s sheltered housing, Belfast

1990s rural HA sheltered housing

Carn Court, Rosslea

Recent HA developments

Sheltered housing: 1 and 2-bedrooms

Refurbished NIHE elders’ housing

Greenview Avenue, Antrim Priory Close, Lambeg

HE research programme Overall aim: full assessment of older persons’ housing needs Component elements include housing & ‘supporting people’

Dual focus, priorities & budgets: ‘landlord’ & ‘social work’ Recurring source of debate and some tensions over Grey area of ‘housing-related support’

Distinctive procurement approach: selective tender process My distinctive roles in advisory group Preliminary in-house work on existing data

Changing age profiles of social housing tenants & applicants New issue: ageing home owners not tenants

3-year programme with inter-related strands Mechanisms to help older people to remain in their homes New provision of accommodation for older people

Enabling people to stay in their homes

Analysis of sources of information for older people Research completed & available from NIHE website (E

Beamish) Scoping inventory then stakeholder consultation Identified information gaps & requirements

Electronic assistive technology (EAT) Identify current provision and explore options for

developing further Develop a web-based repository of material on EAT Largely completed but not yet publicly available (S

Martin) Website design at advanced pre-release stage

Enabling people to stay in their homes

Data audit on information on homes with adaptations Study under way (M Keenan & J Todd) Aims to improve management of services, inform

adaptations policy inc. H&S Initial concern over extraordinary diversity of provision Shifted focus to social sector ‘money trail’

Assess feasibility of non-profit equity release scheme Study recently started (F Boyle) Having to take on board the changed context since credit

crunch

New provision of accommodation

Study of need & demand for retirement villages in NI Project finished and available from NIHE website (F Boyle) Market research/scanning, scope policy issues Scope existing provision, define characteristics Explored literature inc. practice, agree working definitions Visited providers in GB and Republic of Ireland

Current & future housing provision, demand & need Project underway (CP & Housing Executive research unit) Analysis of current accommodation of older people Provide 10-year projection of numbers of households by type and likely

accommodation requirements Overview of good practice re. other forms of new provision Literature review initially public & private sectors Scope for learning from private sector (previous studies just looked at

social housing needs)

New provision of accommodation

Study of dementia-related accommodation Detailed analysis of specific project (E Beamish) High intensity with facilities for family Project underway (CP & Housing Executive research

unit) Review of supported housing provision

Review and analysis of range of current supported housing arrangements (North Harbour)

Comparison with current developments in supporting people policy in GB

Conclusions & issues Ongoing work designed to finish this year

Responding to central funding & policy initiatives Distinctive procurement approach

Projects so far completed within budget and largely on time Research context radically affected by the GFC

Regarding equity & perceptions of risk Especially retirement villages & equity release

Programme considered successful overall: to be extended Tensions between ‘housing’ & ‘supporting people’ Overview of programme and reports at:

www.nihe.gov.uk/strategic_research_july__08.pdf www.nihe.gov.uk/housing_research_bulletin_autumn_2008.pdf

NI-SA comparisons We can learn from you rather than vice versa Especially regarding asset-based housing options in older age Crucial significance of context for policy development & transfer