Article for the North Devon Journal
20th October 2009
A few months ago, I used this column to talk about the Government's proposals to reform the residential care system for the elderly.
A few months ago, I used this column to talk about the Government's proposals to reform the residential care system for the elderly. With an ageing population and increasing life expectancy, how we care for older people is an increasingly important issue; however, it is very easy to forget that care homes are not the only part of the problem.
It is an amazing fact, when one first reads it, that just over 7 per cent of the retired population- about half a million people- are in some form of sheltered or extra-care housing. Residents speak of the sense of security, companionship and collective community in which they reside, allowing them to retain a large degree of independence in their daily life while knowing that they have somebody to check on them should they need help.
In many cases sheltered housing wardens are the life support for very frail, vulnerable and elderly people. Often, such people are newly widowed. Sometimes, they have no experience of carrying out small housing maintenance tasks or looking after the plumbing, the kitchen or the bathroom.
Sadly, this life support is increasingly under threat. As a result of recent changes to the current funding system for those living in sheltered housing, consistent help and support from wardens is being phased out and replaced with "floating support" from non-resident helpers.
Sometimes the new system works well; other times it does not. But all too often, residents have no say in a potentially traumatic and disorientating process. A recent report found that residents were consulted on the change to 'floating support' only about a third of the time; the other occasions saw the system imposed without discussion. This is disgraceful.
On Tuesday morning, I used a Parliamentary Debate to draw attention to this growing crisis in sheltered housing. The Government have a responsibility; Ministers need to take hold of the matter and to tell local authorities not to take decisions before they talk to the residents that are affected, just because they are elderly and frail and preoccupied with the complexities of life. The very least we can do is to give older people a supportive, secure environment, and to consult them on the best way to achieve this.
