HLINks - Are you missing out on the Housing LIN weekly update?
Welcome to #Jeremytalks and my weekly piece to audio to coincide with our must-read weekly bulletin, HLINks, week-ending Friday, 12 March 2021.
This week, to coincide with National #IntegenerationalWeek, we published a guest blog by Laura Wigzell at Motionspot’s Fine & Able in which she offered her insights into how people are beginning to think further ahead and reassess their housing priorities and future-proof their options for later life, including multi-generational housing.
In other news, we have teamed up with Learning Disability England to produce 2 guides on choosing and finding where to live. We are looking for examples of information on ways of working that people think are good.
We also drew attention to the remarkable year of online networking curated by the Housing LIN in 2020, sharing analytics that reveal how going digital has transformed the way our learning and improvement programmes operate and contributed to the success of our new HAPPI Hour webinars and last year’s 2020 Summit. We have also seen our membership grow by a staggering 20% with over 4,500 new members registering with us. If you know of a colleague or have a staff member who you think would also benefit becoming a Housing LIN member, do encourage them sign up! Here’s the link for them to create their free account.
In this week’s HLINks, you can also take a tour of other news and events on later life housing and independent living with regard to homes and communities, health and social care, design and technology, planning matters and more. Check all the latest news and register here to keep in touch with all our alerts and other notifications of your choice, sent direct to your inbox. And remember you can also follow us via our Twitter feeds: @HousingLIN, @HousingLINews and @HLINConsult
And on the social media front, we are recruiting for a Digital Communications Intern. If you are a recent graduate, take a look at our recruitment pack. The deadline is today!
Finally, if you would like to talk to us about any matters highlighted in this week’s issue, share learning about your work and/or discuss how you can engage our highly regarded consultancy services to assist you, email ‘Jeremy talks’ at: info@housinglin.org.uk
You can also listen to #Jeremytalks… here
Thanks for listening, stay connected and, above all, be safe.
Jeremy
New Housing LIN Resources
New Housing LIN Blog: Move or improve?
To coincide with National #IntegenerationalWeek, this new guest blog by Laura Wigzell at Motionspot’s Fine & Able, offers her insights into how people are beginning to think further ahead and reassess their housing priorities and future-proof their options for later life, including multi-generational housing.
Housing LIN Digital Communications - Last chance to apply
We have an exciting opportunity to join our small team in Bristol as a full-time post for a year to support our highly regarded housing learning and improvement programmes. It's a great early career position for someone who wants to make an impact and quickly gain experience working in a dynamic company passionate about communicating innovations and examples of good practice in meeting the housing and care needs of older people and people with disabilities. The closing date is today!
Coronavirus Update
With the Prime Minister’s announcement this week of the 4 steps to unlock the current national lockdown, check out our Coronavirus Info Hub for the latest government guidance, a range of Housing LIN practice briefings for the sector and links to other useful information and websites.
We have also identified the following items as useful reads:
- New inquiry: Long-term funding of adult social care - Committees - UK Parliament
- Extra Care and Supported Living Settings Testing guidance
- Coronavirus: Vaccination of JCVI cohorts 5-6 and additional funding for vaccination in residential settings
- COVID-19: ventilation of indoor spaces to stop the spread of coronavirus - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Do also post any or reply to questions on our discussion forum. It allows you to share information, raise issues and ask questions to solve a tricky issue. For example, can you share your organisation’s COVID-19 risk plan or information about how you are engaging with residents remotely?
Housing, Community, Disability, and Ageing
Learning Disability England and Housing LIN have teamed up to produce a new guide – can you help?
We are working together to make 2 guides on choosing and finding where to live. We are looking for examples of information on ways of working that people think are good. The guides will help commissioners and people with learning disabilities and autistic people plan for and get a home that works for them.
APPG for Terminal Illness Inquiry into Housing and fuel poverty at the end of life
As reported last week, the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Terminal Illness is conducting an inquiry into the impact that the experience of housing and fuel poverty has on people living with terminal illness and people at the end of life. It has identified 5 key areas it wishes to examine. The deadline for submitting a response to its call for evidence is 2 April 2021.
Living at Home, Five Stories from Older People
This short film by BOPF, in collaboration with Care & Repair England and Bristol Ageing Better, features the experiences of five older people on housing in Bristol. The film covers a range of topics such as stereotyping, neighbourly support, housing affordability, the need to stay in the community, the challenges of lockdown and self-isolation and the importance of older people influencing decision-making.
One of the themes to emerge from the film was the importance of neighbourhood communities. Hazel, who took part in the film said, “I don’t know what I’d do without the neighbours I’ve got…they’re from Chad, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Ghana, all over the world, it’s wonderful!”
Re-establishing grandparenting relationships crucial post-lockdown suggests research
Research, conducted by Ready Generations with the University of Sterling and Belong, released for #IntergenerationalWeek, has highlighted the importance of rekindling relationships between grandparents and grandchildren as the nation emerges from lockdown.
Cabinet Office’s Disability Unit Survey
And remember, to help the government with understanding the barriers that disabled people face and what it may need to focus upon to improve the lives of disabled people, the Cabinet Office in preparing a National Strategy are seeking the views people with disabilities to know more about their experiences.
If you are a disabled person, a carer or parent or as someone who has an interest in disability issues, please complete the online survey by 23 April 2021 if you would like to inform the development of the strategy. The survey is also available in other formats.
Other news and blogs
- Intergenerational Home blog: The choice of language in intergenerational practice: Does it really matter? – Connecting generations in a divided world
- Habinteg blog: How the social model of disability can help us add life to years (published by the Centre for Ageing Better)
- Housebuilder news item: Demand for bungalows on the increase
- TLAP blog and upcoming event: Towards resilience: making community matter in social care
- Ready Generations/Belong report: Care to the Nest
Design, Construction, Planning and Technology
TAPPI: call for written submissions extended
Further to the call for evidence for examples and research on how the use of technology has transformed how you operate, design and build new or retrofit existing homes and/or deliver better outcomes for your customers, the deadline has now been extended to the end of March 2021. Have your say to inform and influence Inquiry Panel!
Health and Social Care, Mental Health and Learning Disability
Less than 6 months to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) – Are you prepared?
The UK government has introduced a new form of immigration status to enable eligible European Union citizens, European Economic Area citizens, or Swiss citizens currently living in the UK or resident in the UK before 31 Dec 2020, to stay in the UK after the end of the transitional withdrawal period on 30 June 2021.
For anyone who hasn’t yet seen this, the Home Office have produced a EUSS toolkit Local authority toolkit specifically aimed at Local Authorities. And for more information, please visit the ADASS dedicated EUSS web page below:
We also teamed up with ADASS, the Home Office and Guinness Care this week to run a HAPPI Hour session for Housing LIN members on the implications of the EU Settlement Scheme for the housing with care and support sectors. A recording of this session is available below and we will upload the Q&A report in the coming days.
Other news and blogs
Housing and Dementia
Designing Homes for Healthy Cognitive Ageing: Co-Production for Impact and Scale
The University of Stirling have got the green light from the UK Research & Innovation healthy ageing challenge to research into designing homes for healthy cognitive Ageing: Co-Production for impact and scale (DesHCA).
The Housing LIN is delighted to be one of the non-academic partners to create future-proof housing to meet the needs of the world’s ageing population.
Led by Professor Alison Bowes, the project will bring together Scotland’s leading experts on dementia and dementia design, the building industry, architects, housing providers and people in the community. It is being supported by the royal charity Silviahemmet (also a member of the Housing LIN’s TAPPI Panel). Hot on the heels of the recent APPG housing and dementia report, it will work together to identify housing innovations that can better support people living with cognitive conditions, such as dementia, for longer.
APPG Inquiry report on housing and dementia
Missed this last month? Watch and listen again to the launch of the new APPG Inquiry report on housing and dementia here and be inspired by Wendy Mitchell as she shares her personal story about living with dementia.
Wales and Scotland
Wales
This week, the Welsh Government announced additional capital funding for its’ 2021/2022 Social Housing Grant programme, bringing the total to £250m.
Also, a reminder that the Welsh Government also has two important consultations out, highly relevant for Housing LIN Cymru members. They are:
- Strategy for an ageing society: age friendly Wales (note the deadline is Monday, 15 March 2021)
- Improving social care arrangements and partnership working (deadline 6 April 2021)
And for Welsh government guidance on COVID-19, visit: https://gov.wales/coronavirus
Scotland
A changing nation: how Scotland will thrive in a digital world
While not housing or care specific, the updated Digital Strategy developed by the Scottish Government and COSLA, sets out a vision of a Scotland where everyone has the necessary skills and connectivity to thrive and where technology is used to improve access to services designed around the needs of people
And Scottish government guidance on COVID-19 can be found at https://www.gov.scot/collections/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance/
Events
Our Spring HAPPI Hour series is now live
Have we got exciting news for you! Are Spring HAPPI Hour programme is now live and we have some excellent sessions coming up.
Next week, on Tuesday 16 March, a year on the outbreak of Coronavirus, and following the release of their major report last month, we are hosting a session with Central & Cecil Housing Trust entitled, ‘One year on: being innovative and flexible in the face of a pandemic’. They will be joined by Appello who will talk about the role of technology to combat social isolation.
Then on 15 April, we are delighted to be joined by the Bishop of Kensington who will chair a HAPPI Hour session on the Archbishops of Canterbury and York’s recent report, Coming Home: Tackling the housing crisis together. He will be joined by Professor Christine Whitehead and David Orr who were on the report’s steering group and the vicar of St Brides in Trafford, a church part of the DH funded extra care housing scheme and community hub.
And following the launch of the latest APPG Inquiry report on housing and dementia, we are holding 2 HAPPI Hour sessions on design, and adaptations and technology. These are taking place on 22 April 2021 and 13 May 2021 respectively.
Other events supported by the Housing LIN
We are pleased to be involved in the following virtual events:
- CADR - Centre For Ageing & Dementia Research Conference 2021: A time of change; A time to change? - 23, 24 and 25 March 2021
- TSA's International Technology Enabled Care virtual conference - 22 to 25 March 2021 (please note free places are available to Housing LIN members by inputting this special code: - VITEC/housingLIN21)
In next week’s HLINks
And, in next week's news, as promoted above, we are hosting a HAPPI Hour session on Tuesday with London-based housing association, Central & Cecil, on ‘COVID-19 one year on: being innovative and flexible in the face of a pandemic’. They will also be joined by Appello who will share their work on the role of technology in combating social isolation. In addition, we publish a new guest blog by Tunstall Healthcare’s Zillah Moore on improving health outcomes and the collaboration between health, housing and social care services. Lastly, we are expecting the publication next week of the findings from an important YouGov survey commissioned by Shakespeare Martineau on the public’s perceptions of retirement housing.
Finally, the Housing LIN would like to thank Willmott Dixon for their support in producing this newsletter.