Where you are:

Housing LIN > Resources > Resource Library > Planning for retirement?

Planning for retirement?

RHGuk Planning for Retirement December 2022 (1) cover

A new report from Retirement Housing Group UK (RHGuk), is calling for a series of updates to the planning system in a bid to bridge the gap between demand and supply of specialist housing for older people in the UK.

As the number of people in the UK aged over 80 will go from 3.3m to 4.5m in the coming decade and pressure on health and social care services increases, the report finds that total supply of specialist housing for older people is lagging behind these demographic changes. 

The report draws on supply data from the Elderly Accommodation Counsel (EAC) and times taken to achieve planning consent, which are significantly longer than applications for mainstream housing. It proposes a series of changes to the planning system that would unlock the supply of this type of housing so that people can enjoy more choice about the type and location of home they would like to live in as their needs change in later live.

The key recommendations in the report are:

  • Local planning authorities should be required to include housing needs assessments for all forms of specialist housing for older people by type and tenure so that the sort of new housing being delivered serves the needs of that area.
     
  • Local plans should seek to ensure that a minimum of 10% of all new housing is specialist housing for older people unless the local authority can demonstrate why this is not appropriate for their area.
     
  • 10% of Homes England's and GLA housing fund delivery should be for specialist housing for older people, including shared ownership and affordable rented housing with support and care.
     
  • The Government needs to address the extent to which the financial viability of housing for older people can not be achieved because of additional financial obligations such as Community Infrastructure Levy, Affordable Housing and S106 commitments. 

Richard Morton Chair of RHGuk said:

"The Government's own planning guidance confirms there is a critical need to deliver more specialist housing for older people but so far hasn't delivered a planning system capable of achieving it. The small changes proposed in this report, in combination with the work of the Government's upcoming  task force on Housing for Later Living  present a real opportunity to deliver the step-change that is needed if the UK is to have a housing mix which reflects the needs of an ageing population that wants to stay safely and sociably in a home of their own for as long as possible."