HLINks: Keep up-to-date with sector news, including on COVID-19, new Housing LIN blogs and much more
In last week's edition of HLINks I drew attention to the value of networking with the Housing LIN. This week I highlight how traditional styles of management will need to adapt to a brave new world post COVID-19. This will require greater organisational agility to:
- respond flexibly to changing customer expectations and changes in our social climate, work patterns and economic environment;
- adopt a more networked approach to cross professional boundaries so we can build new or strengthen existing relationships across housing, health and adult social care; and
- gear ourselves to more inclusive leadership with a greater emphasis on knowledge sharing at all levels to accelerate and spread learning faster.
The Housing LIN is well placed to enable you to connect with people and ideas and to draw on our skills and resources to help you improve, innovate and co-design a better range of housing choices with older people and those with a disability or a long term condition. Get networked with us today.
Jeremy Porteus
In this week's HLINks we connect you to the latest news, views and resources on housing and care matters
New Housing LIN Products
This week, we published 2 new blogs:
Everybody needs good neighbours
This new guest blog for the Housing LIN by Eugene Marchese, co-founder and director at Guild Living, highlights the pressures of loneliness and isolation brought into focus during the Coronavirus crisis as families and friends are kept apart.
Like many people all over the world right now, I’m staying at home
In this new guest blog for the Housing LIN, Laura Wood, Co-Founder of Invisible Creations, explores the true impact home design has on our lives, and the opportunity for us to re-evaluate standards and design principles of age-friendly housing and designs at home post COVID-19.
Coronavirus Update
Latest government advice guidelines that are relevant for our sector include
- COVID-19: how to work safely in domiciliary care
- Coronavirus (COVID-19): guidance for social landlords on essential moves
And remember you can check out all key documents by housing, health and social care on our Coronavirus Info Hub as well as all our practice briefings and signposting to other useful information and websites.
Other relevant COVID-19 news include
- Impact of COVID-19 (Coronavirus) on homelessness and the private rented sector
The HCLG Committee has launched this inquiry which will consider both the immediate and long-term impact that the COVID-19 pandemic is having on the homeless, rough sleepers and those in the private rented sector.
The Committee welcomes submissions to the questions in the call for evidence until Friday 1 May 2020. Visit the inquiry's website for more details and to supply evidence. - Is a lengthy lockdown for older people on the way?
- While there's speculation about the end of lockdown, Caroline Abrahams, Charity Director at Age UK ponders what continuing restrictions for older people as part of an 'exit plan' will mean.
- NIHR Mental Health Policy Research Unit (MHPRU) for England are conducting a national survey aimed at helping understand how the COVID-19 pandemic is impacting on mental health services and the people who use these services, and what is being done to manage these impacts, across all sectors. More at: https://elfi.sh/covidmh-survey
- Treasury cut taxes to reduce PPE costs
From today (1 May 2020), PPE purchased by care homes, businesses, charities and individuals to protect against Covid-19 will be free from VAT for a three-month period. (Info hub - NHS and public health) - AgeUK - Tips for staying at home
These tips are to help people feel more confident about how they'll manage at home over the coming weeks and months.
The Housing LIN’s Jeremy Porteus was pleased to present on this week’s CIH webinar on the housing for older people and Covid-19. We will share the recording of the session as soon as it is available.
Specific advice guidelines that are relevant for our sector in Scotland and Wales can be found in the relevant sections further down.
Other News from the sector
Housing, Community, Disability, and Ageing
- Better homes, better lives: Leaders' Briefing (available to purchase from Research into Practice)
This Leaders’ briefing by the Housing LIN’s Clare Skidmore and Jeremy Porteus for Research into Practice, details the future demographic challenge to health and social care systems through the lens of housing for older people. It aims to support leaders in making best use of the information available to inform discussions and decisions about housing options with key partners locally. - The Guardian - Coronavirus has deepened prejudice against older people
- Office for National Statistics - Coronavirus and the social impacts on disabled people in Great Britain
- HB Villages - HBV and Lovell launch new partnership to deliver supported living pipeline
- Brio Retirement Living - We're future proofing the best years of our customers lives
- Inside Housing (registration required) - A week in the life… of a sheltered scheme co-ordinator
Loneliness and social isolation
- Community Fund - Insights on responding to loneliness during COVID-19 Loneliness
- British Red Cross - All Party Parliamentary Group on Loneliness Inquiry
- The Guardian - The extreme loneliness of lockdown: 'Even though my partner is here, I’m struggling to cope'
And for more useful information on combatting loneliness and reducing social isolation, check out our comprehensive webpages.
Health and care
- National Care Forum - Ring of Steel Needed Now: Official Statistics Show Deaths Double in a Week
- The bmj - David Oliver: Let’s not forget care homes when covid-19 is over
- Distancing with Dementia - Practical ideas for living with dementia during social distancing
- The UKHCA blog - Homecare in the time of coronavirus - A call for urgent government investment to realise value and prevent multiple provider failure
- nla - Build homes for NHS heroes, says Notting Hill Genesis housing association chief executive Kate Davies
- Royal College of Occupational Therapists - Rehabilitation
- Think Local Act Persional - Blog - When life is unreal, how are we Making it Real?
And as reported last week, we have added several new (pre-coronavirus) projects on our Home from Hospital interactive map for England. Developed by Foundations and the Housing LIN, this map highlights examples of where housing organisations and local services are, or have been actively supporting hospital discharges and helping to get people home.
Design and technology
- The Universal Design Project - Designing a “Good Fit” For All People
- City Lab - A Lesson from Social Distancing: Build Better Balconies
- LinkedIn - Archadia Chartered Architects - There has been a trend moving towards retirement villages
- PUBLIC - TechForce19: 18 solutions announced to support the vulnerable or isolating
- mOOO - #mOOO3 ISO[NATION]: HOME OFFICE Competion
- Architecture Today - Design for an Ageing Population online discussion
- AT Today - The benefits of smart home technology
Planning
- Health & Wellbeing in Planning - Blog - Planning in the COVID-19 world
Planning tracker
Older People’s Care Development – Local Development Plan Monitoring
In association with Tetlow King Planning, this document monitors current local authority planning consultations that may be of interest for those seeking to develop housing for older people. The tracker is updated fortnightly.
Wales
Welsh government have updated their Hospital discharge service requirements: COVID-19 which health, social care, third and independent sector partners in Wales must follow..
This and other Welsh government guidance on COVID-19 can be found at: https://gov.wales/coronavirus
Other news include:
Scotland
Scottish government guidance on COVID-19 can be found at https://www.gov.scot/collections/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance/
It includes the recent COVID-19 Allocations Advice and Information for the Housing Sector
In addtion, The Scottish Federation of Housing Associations have published various COVID-19 Briefings. The following are of particular interest to our sector:
- Scottish Federation of Housing Associations (SFHA): COVID-19 Briefing Service Delivery
- Scottish Federation of Housing Associations (SFHA): COVID-19 Briefing Care and Support
- Scottish Federation of Housing Associations (SFHA): COVID-19 Briefing Housing Association Finance
Other news include:
Calls for info
Thank you to all who have contributed on our online forum to the ‘Urgent MHCLG call for info on Supported Housing’. The thread is now closed. We have summarised and fed back the comments to colleagues at MHCLG.
In order for you to raise and feedback COVID-19 issues and related questions that are important for your organisation and that you think should be brought to wider attention in our sector, including with MHCLG, we have set up two new threads on our forum:
- Sheltered/retirement housing and extra care housing: COVID-19 related issues and concerns
- Supported housing and supported living: COVID-19 related issues and concerns
The Housing LIN will share a summary of feedback with MHCLG.
Forthcoming Events
Housing LIN Events
In light of the coronavirus outbreak we have cancelled all our upcoming regional meetings and training courses until further notice. We are currently exploring how to hold these events online, so watch this space!
Supported by the Housing LIN
- HDRC webinar: Responding to walking with purpose and distress in extra care housing
- Appello webinar - Digital Telecare: Supporting Self-Isolation
- Appello webinar - Smart Living Solutions – Creating a connected environment
- Better Housing Choices for Older People, and People Who Need Support
- Appello - Meeting expectations with digital telecare
- HRF Academic Conference - Happy Homes, Happy Society?
Next week
Next week we will be publishing two new guest blogs: the first by the Pretty Good Project’s Laura Wigzell on work ready housing and adapting the HAPPI design principle for work readiness. The second - held over from this week - is by the collective foundation’s Andre Damian and considers the value of different forms of co-living and how it has the potential to foster social connectedness. We are also looking to publish a new COVID-19 Practice Briefing (No5) on changes to welfare benefits.
With Thanks and Stay Safe
The Housing LIN would like to thank Willmott Dixon for their support in producing this newsletter.