HLINks - Housing LIN's weekly update at your fingertips

Welcome to #Jeremytalks and our must-read weekly bulletin, HLINks, week-ending Friday, 4 February 2022.

This week saw the publication of the government’s Levelling Up White Paper, ‘Levelling up the United Kingdom’. Tucked away on p226 under section, Improving Housing Quality, is the announcement of a Housing for Older People’s Task Force. We look forward to reporting on its full aims and objectives once published.

The Levelling Up White Paper also highlights the need for decent homes and greater digital connectivity. Something that I addressed in a guest blog for NHSX this week entitled, ‘Why technology-enabled housing is critical to getting care and support right’.

And it was also great to welcome the 2nd cohort of the Housing LIN’s Future Leaders’ Programme to the first meeting of the group last Friday. Unfortunately, we could not meet in person but hope we can do so later in the year. Thanks Thirteen Group for your support and we look forward to sharing the learning from the impressive group of early career professionals at our next annual Summit later this year. Do also read Thirteen's Director Chris Smith's new Housing LIN guest blog 'Spreading the living well message'.

Other news that caught my interest this week, included:

Keep up-to-date with the latest on housing and care matters and register here to receive other notifications of your choice, sent direct to your inbox. And remember you can also follow us via our Twitter feeds: @HousingLIN, @HLINComms and @HLINConsult

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 support you, email  ‘Jeremy talks’ at: info@housinglin.org.uk

Stay connected and, above all, remain safe.

Jeremy

New Housing LIN products

New Housing LIN guest blog: Spreading the living well message

Chris Smith

This Housing LIN guest blog by Chris Smith, Executive Director of Business Growth at Thirteen, highlights some of the work that Thirteen has done around living well.

Chris refers to last week's HAPPI Hour webinar as an opportunity to share some of the research they have carried out over the past six months or so, showing people what they have learned and the direction their Living Well project is taking.

A big welcome to our new Future Leaders!

Future leaders S1 180 x

We are delighted to announce that we recently welcomed 7 early career professionals to this year's Future Leaders’ Programme (FLP), sponsored by Thirteen Group.

In the first session of the year, held virtually, the FLP class of 2022 joined in from Wick in Scotland to Portsmouth in England and represented a diverse professional backgrounds.

Why technology-enabled housing is critical to getting care and support right

Jeremy Porteus

With reference to the government’s recent social care white paper and the Technology for our Ageing Population: Panel for Innovation (TAPPI) Report , Jeremy Porteus, CEO of the Housing LIN outlines exactly what digital infrastructure could look like in housing and the positive impact this could have for residents in his new blog.

Coronavirus

Cover RE-COV Study

Check out current and relevant sector guidance on the pandemic on our Coronavirus Info Hub.

You can also find out more about the launch of the St Monica Trust/Housing LIN RE-COV Study, on COVID-19 and its impact on the retirement village and extra care housing sector.

Government eases social care restrictions following booster success

Department of Health and Social Care logo


Restrictions in place to prevent the spread of Omicron in adult social care will be eased following the success of the booster roll-out.

This includes: Unlimited visiting for care home residents to return and Reduced isolation following a COVID-19 infection for those receiving care. Changes will ensure those providing and receiving care are kept safe while increasing freedoms for residents. Read more here.

Following the DHSC and NHS letter on actions for accelerating the number of people discharged home further resources to support systems in developing care units in care homes are now available on FutureNHS.

What else caught our interest?

  • Letter from the Director General of Adult Social Care, Michelle Dyson, regarding vaccination as a condition of deployment (VCOD) in wider adult social care settings

Housing, Community, Disability, and Ageing

New report calls for housing sector to build more multigenerational neighbourhoods to combat loneliness

Cultivating Neighbourhoods that Care A Manifesto for change cover

A new report, published by Agile Ageing Alliance, urges the housing sector to step up and play its part in combatting the growing epidemic of loneliness through the delivery of more inventive and inclusive places.

Cultivating Neighbourhoods that Care: A manifesto for change draws on perspectives and best practice from around the world and sets out how the housing sector can combat loneliness and mental health issues.

Levelling Up White Paper announces new Housing for Older People Task Force

Levelling Up the United Kingdom

The Housing LIN is pleased to see reference to a new Task Force on Housing for Older People, referenced in this week's White Paper Levelling Up the United Kingdom.

Along with ARCO and other sector leaders, we have supported the case for such a Task Force and, once further details are announced,  look forward to reporting on its work and progress in the coming months.

What else caught our interest?

Design, Construction, Planning and Technology

Housing Design Awards 2022 Submissions are open!

Design for homes logo

This is your reminder that you can now enter the 2022 Housing Design Awards! This is an opportunity to build on the excellent HAPPI designs awarded in 2021 and we are delighted to continue offering our support!

The deadline for submissions is Thursday, 3 March 2022.

Health and Social Care, Mental Health and Learning Disability

What caught our interest?

Housing and Dementia

Did you miss this APPG Inquiry report?

Cover APPG HCOP Dementia

With a new national Dementia Strategy expected, as referenced in the recent Adult Social Care Reform White Paper, watch and listen again to the launch of last year's influential report on housing and dementia here and be inspired by Wendy Mitchell as she shares her personal story about living with dementia.

And did you miss our  HAPPI Hour sessions on housing and dementia? The recording and presentations are now available.

The ‘World Alzheimer Report 2020' update

Cover World Alzheimer Report 2020

The ‘World Alzheimer Report 2020’ report webpages, published by Alzheimer’s Disease International, have recently been updated.

These updates include a blog by World Alzheimer Report 2022 authors that discusses the creation of a new national dementia plan guide which aims to aid policymakers and interested people looking to include dementia-related design in their own national dementia plans.

Wales

For Welsh government guidance on COVID-19, visit: https://gov.wales/coronavirus

Scotland

For Scottish government guidance on COVID-19, go to https://www.gov.scot/collections/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance/

What else caught our interest?

Events

You are invited to the forthcoming HAPPI Hour webinars this Spring!

HAPPI Hour 4pm logo sml

Please note that due to unforeseen circumstances, we have had to reschedule the HAPPI Hour - Housing LIN Scotland presents session that was due to take place on 22 February. This is now planned for Tuesday, 1 March. Further details to be provided. See what we've added in its place below. 

Previous HAPPI Hours:

Forthcoming HAPPI Hours:

Events supported by the Housing LIN

In next week’s HLINks

Remember to book your place for the next HAPPI Hour session on Tuesday, 8 February. We are partnering the National Academy for Social Prescribing and HACT to take a deep dive into social prescription and wider community building. 

We also look forward to publishing a new guest blog by Orbit Group’s Francis Burrows on 'Moving on from the pandemic – what can we learn to drive improvement in older people’s housing?'

Willmott Dixon logo

The Housing LIN would like to thank  Willmott Dixon for their support in producing this newsletter.