The UK has an ‘acute’ lack of housing-with-care for older people, a report has warned.
The report, from the British Property Federation (BPF) in partnership with Cushman & Wakefield, reveals that there are only 74,000 housing-with-care units in the UK today.
This means there are only 0.9% of units for older households in the UK, which falls short of the international benchmark of around 6%. The report argues England and Wales must build 45,000 new homes-with-care each year to meet the benchmark.
The report also discovered that 8% of local authorities in England and Wales do not have a single housing-with-care scheme.
Melanie Leech, chief executive of the BPF, said: ‘Government must make purpose-built housing for older people a national priority. It is critical that the country’s housing sector delivers new, purpose-built homes to serve older people’s aspirations, many of whom will continue to live productive and independent lives, but may wish to have certainty that their future care needs will be provided for.'
The report calls on the Government to establish a Housing for Older People Taskforce, develop a national strategy for housing for older people, and fast track planning projects that exhibit high sustainability standards.
