Growing numbers of older people are being denied proper access to housing choice, the Retirement Homes Group said today. It is urging Housing Minister Margaret Beckett to ensure that older people are not forgotten as the Government focuses on first time buyers and home owners facing repossession as the housing market crisis continues. In a letter to Mrs Beckett, Gary Day, the newly elected Chairman of the Retirement Housing Group (part of the Home Builders Federation) set out priorities for housing the country’s ageing and growing population during the credit crunch. Significant social and economic benefits follow from the provision of good quality specialist housing – not least, the fact that retirement housing frees up under-occupied family-sized housing with beneficial results to the whole housing chain. Speaking today, Mr Day said “The retirement homes market is being hit by the credit crunch with failures in the chain, from first-time buyers onward, preventing older people from selling their homes and having a disproportionate impact on the provision of housing for older people. “We are urging the Government to take steps to assist older people at this time, as in a lot of cases their physical and mental health needs are so reliant upon appropriate accommodation. “The benefits to the wider market are also clear as when people move into private retirement housing schemes, they are freeing up larger homes for families which, in turn, frees up those families smaller homes for younger couples and for first time buyers.” - ENDS - Notes to Editors: 1. RHG consists of retirement housing developers and housing managers, both RSL and private sector. Its ex officio members include representatives of the charity, the Older Accommodation Counsel, and the Association of Retirement Housing Managers. The Advice and Mediation Service (AIMS) of Age Concern is also represented 2. Gary Day (a Director of the UK’s largest retirement home builder, McCarthy & Stone plc) was elected Chairman of the Retirement Housing Group (RHG) on 6 November 2008. 3. RHG is an active member of the Government’s Housing and Older People Development Group (HOPDEV) and Gary is one of its two representatives. He has also worked closely with both the English and Scottish governments to bring forward better housing and planning policies for older people. 4. The Office of National Statistics most recent figures of August 2008 show that the number of older people in England and Wales is increasing as the mortality rate falls and that the 80+ age group is the fastest growing of these. 5. DCLG’s Strategy for Housing in an Ageing Society (February 2008) states there should be a choice of desirable housing with support and care to match changing capabilities as people grow older and more frail. Facts: One in five children born today can expect to live to be 100. By 2026 older people will account for almost half (48%) of the increase in the total number of households, resulting in 2.4 m more older households than there are today. The composition of older age groups will have changed. By 2041 there will be more older age groups, including the over 85s. People aged over 60 now own about £932 bn in equity in their homes. Source: Lifetime Homes; Lifetime Neighbourhoods – A National Strategy for Housing in an Ageing Society DCLG/DoH/Department of Work and Pensions, February 2008 A Better Life: Private Sheltered Housing and Independent Living for Older People The Opinion Research Business (ORB) November 2003 For media enquiries, or to arrange an interview, please contact Steve Turner 020 7960 1606 07919 307 760 steve.turner@hbf.co.uk
