If the specialist later life housing sector is to play its full part in housing our ageing society, argues Tony Watts OBE, more developers need to focus more on how we age healthily.
This is a blog version of a presentation given to the Association of Retirement Housing Managers.
I frequently find myself criticising aspects of the later life housing sector. But (honestly!) that is because I really, really do want the sector to thrive.
We know there is huge untapped demand. Housing LIN and IPSOS recently asked over 5,000 older people, if they had a free choice, which of the following housing options would they prefer most in the future.
10% said “moving to sheltered / retirement housing”. By my reckoning, that’s 2.2 million people.
We also know that the need for specialist housing offering a higher level of support and convenience than they could expect living in mainstream housing has never been greater.
We have a population that might be enjoying longer lifespans… but not longer healthspans.
In fact, the 2020 Marmot Review showed that since 2010, Healthy Life Expectancy at birth has actually fell in England by 1.7 years for males and 1.9 years for females.
There is ample evidence that the right sort of retirement accommodation can alter that trajectory.
Going back to 2017, using Whiteley Village as a case study, a joint report was produced by the International Longevity Centre UK and Cass Business School. The report showed strong statistical evidence that residents, females in particular, receive a substantial boost to their longevity when compared to the wider population.
Critically, the report concludes that retirement villages (or their equivalents) could help in the Government’s aim to reduce mortality inequalities experienced in lower socio-economic groups.
That ties in neatly with the 2020 Marmot review that showed that – since 2010 – the already glaring socio-economic disparities had widened, so people in more deprived areas spend more of their shorter lives in ill-health than those in less deprived areas.
Right housing = longer lives
The conclusion of the ILC UK report, penned by the magnificent and much-missed Sally Greengross, concluded that “the right housing with care community might be able to ameliorate the effects of deprivation and address those inequalities in later life”.
Looking ahead, adding healthy life to our years will be even more important… as our population continues to age and actually gets unhealthier.
A recent study from the University of Oxford and University College London describes a “generational health drift”, with younger generations tending to have worse health than previous generations at the same age.
Their summation: “Increasing demands for health and social care will have huge implications on government spending.”
Your sector could play a key role in stemming the tsunami-like tide currently heading into shore of spiralling demands on our overstretched health and care services.
So, all that said, why isn’t the sector hitting the numbers it should be achieving? And, more crucially, what can be done to address that?
Today, I’m adopting the persona of a “critical friend”… and passing on to anyone listening – from the networks I represent – what we believe works, and what doesn’t work… for the very people developers are looking to attract and retain.
Why do retirement developments have so many empty units?
Some providers may confidently believe the sector already has all the answers. But if that was the case, why do some existing developments have empty units?
I asked AI on Google that very question, and here is the response… and please, don’t shoot the messenger. “Retirement flats in the UK are difficult to sell due to high service charges, restrictive lease terms, and poor resale value, often causing significant financial losses for families.”
Equally,why are planning consents for new developments regularly turned down – often because planning committees argue that their town already has more than enough homes for older people… evidenced by the fact that existing developments have empty units?
I don’t think it would be unfair of me to say that the retirement sector has something of an image problem in some quarters, and that this is acting as a brake on the whole market.
It’s not all bad news. There are lots of developments that are effectively full, that do see resale and capital values appreciating, and are held up in the newspaper supplements as examples of the “dream” of living a rich, varied and fulfilling later life.
Many, of course, are higher budget… but not all.
The thorny issue of exit and management fees is also something that at least parts of the industry recognise it has to address.
But there are many that are tired, poorly designed, and have lost value – particularly in relation to mainstream housing.
Between 2010 and 2024, UK average house prices increased by approximately 45%. How many retirement developments have seen their values rise that much in that period?
Any property is only worth what someone is prepared to pay for it. And if resale prices stall or even fall, the market is sending you a message.
Maybe the sector needs to think again about what that message is… especially if the work by Professor Meyer at the Older People’s Housing Taskforce leads to the planning system prioritising the supply of specialist housing.
It won’t serve anyone’s interests if consents get easier to obtain if the demand isn’t there.
What is the current offer?
Let’s start with a premise we can all agree upon. A key reason many older people elect to move into purpose-designed later life housing is to remain living independently for longer.
But to make that huge decision to leave their existing home and their local community, downsizing and have to give away many of their prized possessions, the decision needs to be aspirational… a genuine, positive choice, not just a reluctant necessity.
They want to move somewhere that really can add life to their years, like the best developments do… even on a modest budget.
Yes, some schemes have on-site health, care and wellbeing facilities that residents can tap into. But many developments, with respect, really are not much more than a bog-standard product that happens to house people on the basis of their age…
More unkindly, I’ve heard some described as “older people’s ghettoes”, or “filing cabinets” and even “warehousing” for older people.
OK, that will meet some of the demand, especially those who simply want somewhere easier to manage than their existing home – and really welcome living in a homogenously-aged environment.
It was certainly how this market began back in the 70s and 80s. But is it really where the “sweet spot” lies in this market today?
The retirement housing schemes that I’ve visited and which are busy, bustling and full, have invariably been those that focused on not just putting a roof over older people’s heads, but have developed real communities where:
- The residents have choices, just as they do in mainstream housing, about how they lead their lives.
- The emphasis is on promoting wellbeing, in all its forms, that encourage greater activity and social connectivity and reduce individuals’ need for formal support.
What does this look like in practice?
Part of my preparation for this presentation was to speak to my fellow Older People’s Housing Champions around the country. I told them my audience and my theme, and asked them for their input.
The Champions are a remarkable network, originally set up by Care & Repair England to guide their work, but which soon grew legs of its own and focussed on all aspects of housing for older people. All of us come from a professional background relevant to the sector – planners, local authority housing leaders and so on – to inform our work.
This is our 2017 Housing Manifesto, so the linkage between health and housing is something that has long been close to our hearts.
All of us are aged in our 70s and 80s, so target market. And our shared experiences and professional backgrounds have informed the following.
Nine ideas to consider…
- Don’t just offer more of the same going forwards
While we already have a large stock of housing already in place, going forward, it would be good to look at what older people are keen to see. That would mean more choice of retirement developments – including much smaller schemes, that would allow more to be built and enable older people to remain close to their existing social networks.
I appreciate that co-design might be a step too far for some, but if you want to guarantee your proposed scheme not only gets through planning but also flies off the shelf, do some genuine, in-depth consultation with local people first… to show there is real demand from local people for what you are proposing.
- Think intergenerational
Not everyone wants to live in a development, as many older people have told me in the past “filled with old people.” It’s not a phenomenon that’s natural in society to be surrounded entirely by people of your own age.
There are plenty of examples now of nurseries and schools running projects with care homes and residential developments that successfully bring the generations together to the benefit of both.
But why not go one further? I was in Alicante recently looking at a project has brought together older people needing affordable housing with younger graduates – requiring exactly the same.
This is an incredibly vibrant, mutually supportive community. Younger people, for a reduced rent, help keep older residents living independently. During lockdown, not one older person caught Covid.
All over the world we are starting to see pilot schemes where small numbers of younger people – usually postgrad students.
3 Create spaces for social connection
I’m not just taking about a common room with serried rows of wing backed chairs and a TV parked in one corner, or even a nice garden. The Alicante project, for example, has wide corridors, open spaces between floors, activity rooms on every level, a roof garden, where people serendipitously meet, chat, connect, eat together… watching out for each other and combating isolation.
Many new developments – to me at least – seem big and blocky, with long corridors that seem institutional and few natural spaces to gather… which is not conducive to socialising.
4 Make developments community hubs
Social prescribing has been hailed as THE great opportunity to improve older people’s health… but is not making the inroads as quickly as it could for one simple reason. Why? Because social prescribing relies heavily on community groups.
And all over the country, community charities that help older people connect, reduce isolation and prevent loneliness are shutting up shop because funding has been cut back by cash-strapped local councils.
We all know the health hazards of loneliness. These charities just need somewhere warm and free to hold groups where older people can meet and stay connected. Perhaps learn new skills to keep them mentally or physically engaged.
More retirement developments taking on a responsibility to host these activities wouldn’t just be winning a lot of plaudits in their community. They would also be advertising themselves to future residents.
5 Connect residents to the rest of their locale
How easy is it for residents to get to the shops or local attractions if they haven’t got their own car? How much easier could you make it?
6 Harness technology
There are plenty of whizzy ways available in which older people’s health and wellbeing can now be monitored – but in reality, we really haven’t scratched the surface in terms of implementing them.
I’ve recently been looking at the latest University research on how we monitor temperature, humidity, movement, even light levels to ensure resident wellbeing.
Another project has an inconspicuous ear bud to monitor vital signs such as residents’ temperature, heart activity, blood oxygen levels and so on. We need to future proof older people’s homes so that the technology can be integrated – and updated – as it evolves.
Why not project yourself as being at the forefront by collaborating with researchers working at the sharp end of these technologies?
7 Encourage and enable residents to continue growing and learning…
Getting into your 70s, 80s and beyond doesn’t mean you don’t want to continue developing your skills and broadening your knowledge. Make developments somewhere that U3A or book groups can meet or art classes are held. Being mentally active is just as important as remaining physically active to stave off the ageing process.
8 Make everyone feel welcome
This is a generation where minority groups have had to deal with institutional prejudice, and old scars often remain. Not everyone will assume that existing residents within a scheme will welcome them in… unless you make it so.
9 Empower your residents to run their own communities
Finally, getting older does not mean you lose your desire to design and manage your own environment… or your ability to do so.
“Too often residents are disempowered and their abilities underestimated,” said one of my fellow Housing Champions. “The voice of older people in the design and the model of housing management would ensure residents’ needs and aspirations are met.”
“Management should be required,” another said, “not merely encouraged, to create an atmosphere where residents can join in with development and running of the activities in ‘their scheme’.
“Some will opt out but many will join in to everyone’s benefit if given the opportunity. Dominance by one or a small group can lead to difficulties, but a good manager will prevent this happening.”
One of the toughest parts of getting older is recognising that your control over your circumstances is gradually ebbing away. Enabling older people to retain as much of their independence and autonomy as they can, while being there to fill the gaps, is not just the way to create a rich and vibrant community.
It will give purpose and motivation to individuals’ daily life, extend their healthy life expectancy… and keep retirement developments full along the way.
