Circular SWSG7/94 5458 - Community Care - The Housing Dimention

SECTION 5 - HOUSING MANAGEMENT

Introduction

5.1 Housing management plays an essential part in the successful implementation of community care at local and operational level, and hence interagency working should be part of housing management. This section covers those parts of housing management which are likely to be of particular importance to community care, including allocation of tenancies; management of tenancies; and the links between housing management and care management. This guidance is set within the general framework of housing management and allocation procedures for all groups, including other special needs groups. It also takes account of circular Env 23/1994, which gave guidance on the preparation by local housing authorities of housing management plans, requested by the Department for 30 September 1994.

Allocations

5.2 Allocation policies should be sufficiently flexible to take full account of the needs of all community care groups, in making available the housing component of individual community care packages. This approach will only be effective at the individual level if the housing provider has been involved in the initial assessment.

5.3 In making allocations to people in community care groups, the following points should be kept in mind:

5.3.1 If possible users should not be moved from their existing homes, or where a move to special accommodation is required, this should be a single move without interim accommodation; though transitional accommodation may be appropriate in some cases. This will require co-operation between housing, social work and health providers to ensure the necessary support services are provided; and that these are varied as the user's needs change. The housing authority should always consider whether adaptations to the house, either separately or as part of a Care and Repair scheme, may enable the user (and any carer) to remain living there, with or without support services. If adaptations are supplied to the private sector, they may avoid the need to allocate a public sector tenancy.

5.3.2 Care should be taken to ensure that housing for community care users is not confined to concentrated developments, but is integrated and dispersed throughout the community. This will have implications for the provision of support services, and for the monitoring of these services and individuals' needs and requirements.

5.3.3 The choice of housing available to an individual can be increased by nomination arrangements between housing authorities, and other housing bodies. As these arrangements develop, it may be possible to introduce sharing of information on applicants between housing providers (subject to guarantees of confidentiality) and eventually single waiting lists. This would reflect housing authorities' key strategic and enabling role. It should be emphasised that a single waiting list does not imply that the allocation criteria of all the participating bodies needs to be the same, it is not a single allocation system.

5.4 Whether or not such arrangements are in force, it is important that there are clear allocation criteria and procedures which fulfil any relevant statutory requirements. These should be available to users, other interested housing bodies, social work and health bodies. The latter should respect these criteria in making nominations or requesting placements; including providers' need to maintain a balanced community within a particular development. Likely waiting times might also be made known; and joint planning and operational arrangements should be realistic in terms of when suitable housing is likely to be available for health or social work clients. This availability, particularly of specialist housing, will vary between areas.

5.5 For some care in the community users, transitional housing will be needed, to allow the individual to attain tenancy or homelife skills, or time to assess the range of housing options available to them. One individual may need to move between 2 or more types of housing as his or her condition changes.

5.6 Whatever the housing placement, the package of accommodation and services provided should be kept under review, and adjusted as necessary to take account of changes in the tenant's condition and circumstances. Sometimes a change of accommodation, including in some cases a move to a residential or institutional establishment, will be required.

Management of Tenancies

5.7 The wide range of needs of care in the community users, and the policy of maintaining people in their own homes wherever possible, have significant implications for housing management services. These services range from the standard service delivered to tenants through to the management of fully supported accommodation. Most users will already be living in the community, rather than being discharged from hospital care, but the switch from institutional to community care will tend to increase the dependency levels of those living in the community. As the dependency needs of the user change, this will be reflected in the housing management, social care and health services required. While housing and care will often be provided as a package by one provider, such as a housing association; in other cases it will be necessary to set up administrative arrangements to ensure the delivery and review of the entire package on an interagency basis. Responsibility for ensuring this might lie with the care manager who would be appointed for a case under the guidance set out in circular SW11/91 "Community Care in Scotland: Assessment and Care Management". The care manager would be responsible for coordinating the original assessment, planning and arranging for the delivery of the care package including suitable accommodation, monitoring the quality of care provided, and reviewing the needs of the community care user as necessary. The care manager will not normally be the housing manager unless the housing provider also provides care. However, there will be cases where housing and housing management is the predominant part of the package with social care services being minimal, in which cases the housing manager may have the lead role in practice. Whoever is the care manager, it will be important to take into account the differing priorities, procedures, and timescales to which the various bodies involved operate, and to set up liaison arrangements at local level clearly allocating responsibilities to different services, and preferably to named officers. The user and any carer should also be clear about where and how to contact them, perhaps via the care manager or another "one door" officer.

5.8 Some of the following paragraphs are specific to local housing authorities whereas others apply to all housing providers.

5.9 In addition to the general supervision and management of their houses, including repairs and maintenance, housing providers may have to provide the following housing welfare services to their tenants who are community care users, as well as for other groups of tenants. Housing authorities have discretion to charge some or all of this expenditure to the Housing Revenue Account instead of general fund expenditure.

- Co-operation with social work and health agencies in referrals and arrangements for the delivery of community care services;

- Assistance with rent and money management, including advice on social security benefits.

- The provision of warden services in sheltered accommodation.

- Advice on living in the housing, e.g. use of adaptations.

- Assistance with home maintenance, choice of furniture, decorations etc.

- Assistance in settling disputes with tenants or neighbours; and

- Maintenance of gardens or communal facilities, subject to a service charge where appropriate.

5.10 Because of their contacts with tenants, housing management staff may be the first to learn that tenants have community care needs, or that their existing community care needs have changed. This role of housing management can be developed to prevent minor problems becoming more serious, and as an early warning system for breakdowns in support packages. It may also act as a trigger for joint operational working, in accordance with procedures which should be agreed between the relevant bodies.

5.11 Registered housing associations may be eligible for Scottish Homes' Special Needs Allowance Package (SNAP) which is a contribution to the enhanced housing management costs incurred in supported accommodation (but not care costs). The eligible activities are as follows:

- help with management of rent

- help to maintain or enhance property

- help to exercise choice in relation to tenancy matters

- information and advice about benefits and related income issues

- help in settling tenancy disputes

- advice with regard to living in the house

Provision of Aids, Equipment and Adaptations

5.12 There have been a number of queries about the respective responsibilities of housing, social and health bodies for the provision of aids and equipment, and adaptations to houses, for the benefit of people with physical disabilities; as a result of the COSLA request to local authorities of 4 March 1993 to implement Circular SDD 40/85 (also numbered NHS 1985 (GEN)33 and SWSG 17/85) which gave guidance on this topic. (The COSLA letter was issued following The Scottish Office's agreement to effecting corresponding a transfer of £1 million from social work to district miscellaneous services in calculating GAE levels to cover the associated annual costs as estimated by COSLA). The guidance provided in the Appendix the circular SDD 40/1985 remains valid, and is reproduced in slightly amended form as Annex 7 to this circular. (See also Annex 5 (Sources of Funding)). This allocation of responsibilities is not rigid and on occasion departures from it may be necessary to avoid delays to users.

5.13 It may be helpful to local housing authorities to note that expenditure on permanent aids and adaptations to local authority housing stock would usually score against the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) capital allocation, although it may also be directly funded from the HRA. Subject to the consent of the Secretary of State, revenue expenditure on aids and adaptations to local authority housing may be excluded from the housing revenue account, as may also be the case with the loan charges consequent upon borrowing to finance such aids and adaptations. In such circumstances, the revenue expenditure, including the loan charges, would fall to be met from the general fund, where it is considered relevant expenditure for the purposes of the annual Aggregate External Finance Settlement.

5.14 It should be noted that it is the responsibility of social work departments, within the resources available to them, to make available to housing authorities specialist advice from appropriately qualified and experienced staff, for example occupational therapists, on the specific needs of a particular handicapped person. The Scottish Office is aware that occupational therapists are working very closely and successfully with many housing authorities, and it hopes this will continue to be the case.