Repurposing Sheltered Housing for Care Workers
The UK is facing a social care and housing crisis. The combination of these issues is acutely felt in housing for older people and solutions should be sought that address both issues.
Following on from presenting at the Housing LIN HAPPI Hour on Remodelling sheltered housing for the 21st Century I have been having various conversations on the subject, and it has been great to discuss different experiences and ideas.
In my presentation, I spoke about the importance of taking a holistic approach and, not just reviewing the building itself, but considering other factors such as community, finance and the surrounding neighbourhood. Another key component of the sheltered housing model is the provision of care.
One issue that I repeatedly hear from housing associations and operators is the difficulty in hiring care staff, with travel costs often a barrier. One solution to this is to reduce the amount of travel involved by having a local workforce. However, in many areas, the cost of housing makes this prohibitive for many. The re-purposing of a sheltered housing scheme no longer fit for use by older people for care workers provides a solution.
Diagram showing where a Care Hub could be situated in relation to other locations used for sheltered housing.
If the building is in good condition, there is no reason why a relatively low-cost refurbishment of the building could provide it with a new lease of life. The buildings would be suited to a co-living model, providing care workers with a private studio and some shared communal space. In most cases, the private studios would not meet modern space standards; however, this is the case in contemporary co-living schemes. The benefit of a smaller private studio is that the rental costs could be lower for the occupants. Furthermore, the provision of housing for care workers could assist with recruitment, which is difficult and could form part of an employment package.
The HAPPI Hour focused more on remodelling and new-build sheltered housing, but there is the option to repurpose and repurpose to benefit care workers, solving two problems at once. There are also carbon benefits, and it is relatively low-cost. This type of repurposing could offer a different solution for what to do with outdated sheltered housing.
Written by: Mark Slater, Design Director at WWA Studios
