Caring for Elderly Parents and Relatives Living in Sheltered Housing
Sheltered housing is an ideal option for your elderly
parents if they are fit and active enough to live independently
but could benefit from having the ability to call for help in an
emergency.
It is designed to be a bridge between a fully independent
home and residential care and sheltered housing schemes were originally run by local
authorities, housing associations and the voluntary sector.
Sheltered housing run by councils and the voluntary sector is
for rent only, whilst that run by housing associations is for
rent or part-buy. Now, however, there are many private sheltered
housing schemes where you can buy a property, usually on a
leasehold basis. Indeed, following the trend in the USA, we are
now beginning to see what are sometimes called 'retirement
communities' springing up in this country.
Caring for Elderly Parents and Relatives links
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The 'retirement communities' have other facilities such
as a centre with a bar and restaurant, golf course a shop and so
on. The more traditional sheltered housing schemes are a
collection of houses and flats with a warden living in one of
them who can be summoned when needed. What they all have
in common is that elderly people live on their own, in their own
homes, but with help near at hand. This does not rule out
obtaining help from social services in the form of carers and so
on; it is an extra benefit. To see how to find out about the
care that is available through Social Services, click on
'Living with You' in the link box to the left.
When looking for sheltered housing, you need to draw up the
criteria that you believe that caring for your elderly parents
requires. Have a look at the list we have provided for care and nursing homes and do a similar one. It is important
that you choose sheltered housing that will be appropriate to
the needs of your elderly parents. However, you may need to be
patient because a lot of sheltered housing schemes have lengthy
waiting lists, whether they are in the public or private sector.
Most of them are usually kept to about 30 units of
accommodation and the best sites are close to shops, health
centres post offices and public transport. The location will
usually be high on people's list of criteria, but there are
other important factors, too, such as the availability of help
at all times, the standard of the accommodation and so on.
'Retirement communities' are usually larger than 30 units but
similar criteria will apply. For example, some of the larger
developments provide residential nursing care in their schemes,
or build sheltered accommodation on the same site as a nursing
home, so residents are assured of continuing care as they grow
older and more frail. However, all these factors are reflected
in the price!
If
you and/or your elderly parents are considering buying sheltered
housing, there are possible additional costs and other issues
that you must enquire about:
 Service charges, which cover items such as maintenance,
the upkeep of the grounds and building repairs. However,
some residents have had these charges increased dramatically
after the first year, particularly with new schemes, when
things such as wardens' salaries, insurance premiums,
cleaning contracts etc are taken into account. You need to
satisfy yourselves as far as possible about these charges.- Make sure that the contract states what are the
responsibilities of the management and what is down to the
residents.
- See if any of the residents are members of the
management committee, so that the residents have the
opportunity to safeguard their own interests.
Sheltered housing has the benefits of giving elderly parents
the chance to live independently alongside people of a similar
age so that they can make friends and not feel lonely. They also
have the benefit of help that is on hand and only minutes away.
However, as with everything else, you must ensure that it is
right for your elderly parents and that it is the best option. |
