Alternative housing options

If you are finding it hard to manage in your current house or flat you may want to consider altering it to suit your needs. You may feel, however, that moving to accommodation that is designed to meet your needs is a better solution, especially if you are not ready to move into permanent residential care.

Locality Housing Officers

Locality Housing Officers are Adult Services staff based in district council offices. They provide a link between district council housing department and local adult services area offices to provide a partnership to house people who have care needs.

Part of their role is to enable service users to move towards a more independent way of living, by being able to access the housing most suitable for them. They ensure that a care and support package is put together for a service user is viable and sustainable.

Sheltered housing

Sheltered housing is mainly for older people and usually takes the form of a group of small bungalows or flats supervised by a Scheme Manager, who can give you some help and support in an emergency. To find out more about sheltered housing near you, contact your local councils, housing department.

Extra care

Extra care, or very sheltered housing, offers an alternative to residential care, providing a range of quality services which ensure that you can live as independently as possible for as long as possible. Twenty-four hour care is available on-site with care and support being provided according to your individual needs. Assisted bathing facilities and catering are also available. Communal facilities include space for residents to share in a range of social activities if they wish. Other facilities such as healthcare and hairdressing may also be provided within the scheme. Depending upon the individual scheme, you may be able to either rent, own or part-own your own flat or bungalow.

The County Council is currently working with partners to increase the range of schemes and number of places that are available. Details of the extra care schemes in Hampshire can be found on the Elderly Accommodation Counsel website

Supported housing

Supported housing is accommodation designed to meet the particular needs of people with disabilities and support is provided as a condition of living in the accommodation. This may be housing, where, for example, all facilities are accessible to someone in a wheelchair. Schemes vary in how much support, such as an emergency-call system, is provided. Your district or city council housing department should be able to give you details of what is available locally.

‘Group living’ schemes

There are also some ‘group living’ schemes which offer communal accommodation to small groups of people in a similar situation – a kind of house-share. These schemes are mainly for people with learning disabilities and for people with mental health problems. Group living schemes are run largely by voluntary organisations or housing associations. For more information contact your local Adult Services office.