Sheltered housing

poppy8

Can anyone give me some idea of how long it takes for an elderly person to get into sheltered housing? I know it will be different in certain areas, but my grandad has been on the list for 3 complexes for over a year but nothing has come up yet. Is this an average lenght of time? Is it okay to get in touch with the Social Work Department and ask? As you can tell, I an new to all this, so any advice would be appreciated. Thanks

headchef

Hi there
Certainly get in touch with Social Services and ask. Certain circumstances may move him up the list - for example, his current accommadation becoming unsuitable because he finds stairs uncreasingly difficult, no family nearby to take care of him, etc. Think around every aspect of his current situation and care to build a picture for Social Services with regard to how 'difficult' it is for your grandad. I've found (unfortunately) that it is the people who bring the most pressure to bear that get what they want.
Also though, it is a case of erm, waiting for a vacant property. But getting your grandad to be a higher priority for rehousing is a good start

Savvy_Sue

Good advice from Headchef, but as well as Social Services it is worth checking whose waiting lists he is on and seeing if there are any others. I know that some Housing Associations offer sheltered housing, so if he is only on the council's lists he may be missing out on other possibilities. The local council's housing office should be able to tell you what's out there.

jellyhead

it's worth finding out if he's near the top of the waiting list, and if not if there's anything you can do to up his status. even if he is top though they only become available when somebody else no longer needs one. i'm sure my nan's took less than a year to come through, it did come with the condition that she had to kick her son out though, she was in a 3-bed council house at the time and her son was an adult, he wasn't allowed to stay on in the house. i think they really wanted her council house for a family so they gave her priority.

Savvy_Sue

jellyhead wrote:

it's worth finding out if he's near the top of the waiting list, and if not if there's anything you can do to up his status. even if he is top though they only become available when somebody else no longer needs one. i'm sure my nan's took less than a year to come through, it did come with the condition that she had to kick her son out though, she was in a 3-bed council house at the time and her son was an adult, he wasn't allowed to stay on in the house. i think they really wanted her council house for a family so they gave her priority.

Actually there's really no such thing as 'top' of the waiting list, because it's a combination of your needs matching the accommodation available. So grandad might be 'top', but the next available unit might be a two person one, or not have all the facilities he needs and so on.

But it is always worth checking that the information on his application is bang up to date, especially if his health deteriorates or he is coping less well in his present accommodation.

Becles

It depends on your situation. You get points for each problem regarding why you can't live in your current house, and the one with the most points when a suitable place becomes available gets offered it.

If he's been on the list for a year, ask if you can have a review. List everything that is causing a problem in his current house, and I mean everything, even if it makes him sounds like a really sad case.

When my Gran moved into her flat, they were most concerned as she was paying bogus repair men to do jobs that didn't need doing, she was scared of teenagers hanging around and wouldn't go out in the dark, and she couldn't cope with garden and housework for a 3 bed house. Family struggled to help out as both her children and their spouses work.

headchef

Becles wrote:

List everything that is causing a problem in his current house, and I mean everything, even if it makes him sounds like a really sad case.

Well put Becles. That's what I was hinitng at but you put much better.