The Gateshead Housing Standard for Ageing Well

Our research with local people indicated that ageing well means being able to live independently at home for as long as possible; for some people this will be in a conventional home whilst others might move to specialist housing that supports their independence. The section identifies the range of housing choices to suit an ageing population and features within the home, including design and technology to support people to live independently.

89% of survey respondents said that it was very important that their home enables them to live independently.

Providing a range of housing choices that support people to remain independent 

Gateshead council is committed to securing the right mix of housing (tenure and type) in the right locations, to meet population projections, support independent living of older people, disabled and vulnerable residents, and deliver our targets for sustainable economic and housing growth. 

Gateshead's Housing Strategy 2019-2030 (PDF, 815 KB)(opens new window) and Gateshead's Specialist and Supported Housing Needs Assessment and Strategy 2023 indicates that this is about providing a range of housing types that enable people to live independently for as long as possible, including: 

• A range of supported and specialist housing (which enables good use of assistive and health technology) that will give people more choice, and meet specific needs of our residents, lead to fewer people living in inappropriate accommodation, reduce the reliance on residential and nursing care accommodation. 
• A range of aspirational and affordable mainstream homes that provide for our growing older population, and households that include people with disabilities, that will allow them to live independently and cost effectively for longer. 

This is supported by Gateshead's 2021 Local Plan and Specialist and Supported Housing Supplementary Planning Document 2022.

Housing that is 'care-ready' 

'Care-ready' housing typically means that a home is capable of adaptation over time to meet changing needs as people age, including space for aids and adaptations. Through good design, homes can be built to be better suited to possible future requirements such as the need to have an over-night carer, storage for mobility scooters and space for care givers, in order to retain independence. 

Care-readiness through the design of accessible homes that adapt to people's needs across their lives is covered in chapter 5. For some of us a care ready home will be enough to enable us to live at home and 'age in place' without ever moving to specialist housing. 

Existing homes can be made more 'care-ready' through the use of aids and adaptations, however the qualitative research indicated that people are seeking adaptations that don't stigmatise ageing but are attractive and non-institutional. 

"If your health allows, support to stay in your home if you want it is crucial, I want to adapt my property so I can stay here" - Gateshead resident 

Case study: Bruyn's Court, Thurrock 

Bruyn's Court in Thurrock has 25 flats, all of which are flexibly designed to adapt to meet the changing needs of residents as they grow older. The 'care-ready' scheme does not provide care and support services, but the aim of the scheme is to radically improve the standard of living for older people in Thurrock, taking account of their social and physical needs, and encouraging social interaction and mutual support. The development has also been designed to help revitalise the town centre, modernising the local built environment while adding further commercial viability to the town centre shops. It has been designed to HAPPI standard, lifetime homes and Sustainable Code Level 4. 

Case study: Invisible Creations

Invisible Creations provide attractive, dual-purpose, and discreet adaptations, strategically placed around the home to help reduce decline in health and make daily living even easier. Invisible Creations products include a plant pot grab rail and shower shelf which have been designed to be practical and stylish.

"I don't want my home to make me feel old, aids and adaptations should be invisible" - Gateshead resident 

Technology and the TAPPI principles 

Technology should enable older people to live independently for as long as possible at home. New housing should provide digitally enabled homes that allow for technologies to be integrated now and into the future. 

Technology and digital infrastructure that can provide support to older people with health and care needs should be built into all new housing whether specialist or mainstream, for example that facilitates the use of movement sensors that can highlight falls. 

 "Technology can support independence but I need support to learn how to use it" - Gateshead resident 

The Technology for our Ageing Population: Panel for Innovation (TAPPI) (opens new window)has developed a framework that should be followed when considering technologies that support older people to live independently at home. This consists of: 

Foundations (for example, what you need before you start embedding technology in housing and care for older people). 

1. Co-produced - As early as possible in the process, people and those in their circle of support should be involved as equal partners in the design, procurement and implementation of digital solutions. Making sure that everyone is included, and no one is excluded from taking part. 

2. Connected - Makes sure that devices and systems have a reliable, affordable, and secure internet connection and that there are back-ups or alternatives in place if connections fail. This is to help create a supportive environment where people and their circle of support can stay connected to each other and their community. 

Principles (for example what the tech service needs to be) 

3. Seamless - Makes sure that people and those in their circle of support and different technologies can work together seamlessly in an accessible and hassle-free way. Technologies should be able to adapt to people's changing circumstances and be future proofed so they can flex with new technological or service developments. 

4. Affordable - Provides transparent value for money and enough choice to make it affordable for everyone. 

5. Safe - Delivers a service that prevents problems developing and reinforces the independence of people and those in their circle of support. Makes sure that any private data is kept safe, and safeguards are in place to protect people from internet scams, technology misuse or failure. 

6. Supported - Provides accessible, ongoing training and support to help people and those in their circle of support to build and maintain their digital confidence and skills. Makes sure that senior leaders are on board and that projects are supported by dedicated staff, with both technology know-how and people skills. 

A case study from Bield Housing Association shows these principles put into practice.  

Case study: Bield Housing Association, Scotland 

Bield Housing and Care are one of the largest providers of housing and support services for older people with over 5,000 customers across 23 local authority areas in Scotland. Bield Response 24 (BR24) is their inhouse digital alarm monitoring service which operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Bield received funding from the TAPPI project that enabled them to work with tenants to test different devices, apps, and systems across a variety of housing settings. Tenants were given shared responsibility, alongside staff, to co-produce digital services to support their independent living. This resulted in Anthropos4 being selected as their technology-enabled-care project partner. Using Anthropos a Connected Care Platform that enables intelligent remote monitoring, means that the technology they provide will integrate with their systems to meet individuals' varying needs. 

Case study: Blackwood Housing Group, Scotland 

Blackwood is a Scottish housing association and care provider specialising in homes and care services for people with an independent living need. Co design and co-creation are embedded into the creation of their products and services, involving customers, their families and staff teams. Blackwood's CleverCogs customisable digital system enables residents to access many of Blackwood's services online using a tablet-based app. As part of the wider Blackwood CleverCogs offer, all tenants can have WiFi connectivity in their home, are offered a Blackwood tablet device, are provided with free digital skills training for all levels to get online with confidence and ease as well as the CleverCogs Digital System. CleverCogs enables emergency alarms, care planning, home automation, communication including family and friends video calls, health and wellbeing advice as well as entertainment functions. CleverCogs enables tenants to achieve new levels of independence, promotes choice and control and, because the system is based around a series of tiles onscreen, it can be adapted to the individual needs of the user.

Application to specialist housing 

For some people over the age of 55 or 60, living in sheltered or retirement housing enables them to live as independently as possible as a result of the provision of support, communal space for socialising and enhanced safety and security. Extra care housing enables people over the age of 55 or 60 with a care or support need to live independently in their own apartment with access to 24 hours a day, seven days a week onsite care staff, sometimes as an alternative to living in a care home. 

The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Housing and Care for Older People inquiry report into the regeneration ofoutdated sheltered or retirement housing (opens new window), sponsored by The Abbeyfield Society identified key features of contemporary sheltered housing. The report highlights what a service model that promotes independence should consist of in contemporary sheltered and retirement housing. Using the evidence from this report, the table below demonstrates what Gateshead Council considers to be the service model that will enable people to age well in specialist housing.