Why housing & support for older people should be a key priority
This week, Erosh, the national charity representing organisations providing specialist housing and support services for over 120,000 older people, contacted ministers in the new government and opposition ministers to make it clear why they should prioritise housing and support for older people. Erosh champions the need for good quality older people’s housing and support and lobbies nationally for continuous improvement and to promote good practice.
The report for ministers sets out erosh’s key messages and what they would like done to support housing and related support services for older people, and why. In recent years there have been huge changes to the older people’s housing and support sector not least because of the refocusing or, in an increasing number of cases, withdrawal of Supporting People funding.
The prime message was that:
Good quality housing and support services for older people, really do save money for health, social care and public health and need to be top of their agenda.
As the number of older people and their support needs increase, placing even more demands on other agencies, erosh would like the government to appreciate more the role of sheltered and retirement housing and support services in saving money for health and social care, contributing to the preventative agenda and reducing admissions to hospital. Sheltered and retirement housing offer relatively inexpensive forms of support which enhance people’s sense of security and well-being and promote independence.
Additional lobbying messages from Erosh were:
- Older people’s aspirations must be taken into account in decisions relating to design, delivery and development of homes and services which should promote empowerment, independence and choice.
- Housing and support for older people play a vital role in combatting social isolation and loneliness.
- Services for older people should be person-centred and promote empowerment, independence and choice.
- Housing for older people must be designed to meet older people’s current and future needs and be affordable, accessible, inclusive and non-discriminatory.
- Older people’s housing and support services should comply with appropriate nationally recognised quality standards.
- Staff working with older people should be appropriately qualified, formally inducted and regularly trained to ensure they are up to date and comply with professional standards.
Erosh Launches “SiT”
Vital new tool for recording evidence to persuade commissioners of the value of services
At the same time, Erosh is formally launching its new Service Impact Tool (SiT), an easy-to-use framework for organisations to record the evidence needed to demonstrate the value of housing and related support services to local authorities, statutory services, and other key stakeholders and how they contribute to the prevention agenda and save money for health and social care.
Up until the end of August 2015, Erosh is offering SiT for a special introductory price of just £150 for erosh members and £300 for non-members. To find out more about SiT and how to become an erosh member, tel. 0333 011 5804 or email info@erosh.co.uk
Organisations are being urged to join erosh to actively influence government policies and practice for the older generation with a collective voice. Visit www.erosh.co.uk for more information and details of membership.
For further information and images, or to arrange an interview contact:
Alison Braithwaite (Evergreen Marketing) Tel: 01386 859442 alison@evergreenmarketing.co.uk
For more information about Erosh, the new Service Impact Tool (SiT) and how to become a member, visit www.erosh.co.uk.
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