For those who prefer to remain in their own homes but would welcome company and occasional assistance, sharing one’s home might provide a very workable solution. By Tony Watts OBE.

Homesharing is one piece in the growing matrix of options becoming available to older people who don’t necessarily want to go down the traditional route of moving into a dedicated retirement development or care home. So what does it involve… and who does it appeal to?

Amanda Clarke is a founding member of an organisation called the Homeshare Association…  –a body set up some three years ago to oversee and promote the burgeoning number of organisations that bring together older people who would welcome someone to share their home in return for companionship and a modest level of support… with those who would love to fill that role.

Amanda is director of Share and Care Homeshare, which has been operating since 2006; and, as she says, there are Homeshare schemes operating in other countries too. But it remains a concept that has a way to go to fulfil its enormous potential.

One of the things that distinguishes her body from other well-known organisations with a similar proposition is that they don’t offer nursing/personal care as part of their package.

“We’re not required to be CQC registered as home share organisations do not provide personal care,” Amanda says, “often people don’t understand that an agency only needs to be regulated if it offers personal care, which homeshare does not.

“Although homeshare organisations don’t offer personal care they can still undertake a lot of very useful support around the home which enables older people to remain in their own homes at very low cost. Around 50% of House Holders, for example, have some form of dementia, which makes some of those tasks important for their safety.

“House Holders might well have mobility issues or a bit of arthritis. And many will be lonely and welcome the company our approach offers.

“What we are also seeing is that older people are becoming increasingly aware of the fact that that the generations below them may not be able to afford to rent or buy their own home – especially single people.

“That sort of turns what is happening on its head. It is not an older person feeling vulnerable or needing support. It’s them helping someone else too.  Homesharing is a circle of support.”

Selecting the right person

Key to the success of any Homeshare is match making the “House Holder” with the “Home Sharer” to ensure the relationship is going to work.

“It starts with a very, very detailed, interview,” says Amanda, “where we ask lots of personal questions you would never normally ask. And we do thorough reference checking too, as well of course as a Fully Enhanced DBS.

“That’s because  we are looking for a certain type of person… somebody who, perhaps, is very fond of their grandparents or has experience working with older people. The House Holder needs to feel entirely comfortable with them… but the Home Sharer has to feel comfortable as well… it has to be ‘their home’ too.

So what sort of people make good Home Sharers? “It’s really across the board,” says Amanda. “The average age is 40, and that age has risen over the years, but that takes in people of all ages – making it an intergenerational arrangement in the truest sense.

“Yes, we have younger people who are single, but also many who have divorced or been widowed later in life… including some whose children have left home and they too don’t want to live on their own.

“Again, on average, some 78% of Home Sharers are women, along with 81% of House Holders – and their average age is 83… although our oldest is actually 104! And that gender breakdown is interesting because it reflects the increasing number of men living into later life.”

Recommendations

Many arrangements start after an enquiry from a family member, but an increasing number of House Holders are recommended to Homeshare organisations by local authorities who know the person because they have carried out a needs assessment, or they are looking to discharge them back to their own home after a stay in hospital.

“It’s an area where we are getting increasing traction,” says Amanda, “although some local authorities are still resistant to the idea because it doesn’t tick one of their usual boxes. Some, as I mentioned before, are concerned that we aren’t ‘regulated’ in the conventional way – even though we have rigorous procedures in place. There is a proper licence agreement in place and we also closely monitor how well the relationship is working.” 

Changing lives

The average length of a Home Share stay, says Amanda is between 18 and 22 months, and the guaranteed support provided is 15 hours a week – ten hours of practical help a week and five hours of company. The cost to set up and monitor the Homeshare is shared between two people involved – each of whom pays around £160 a month: a relatively tiny amount compared with buying in support or paying rent.

The Home Sharer also contributes toward the cost of household bills.

“So often we see it changing lives,” says Amanda. “Friendships develop. So many of the younger House Sharers are missing someone older in their lives having had a strong relationship with a parent or grandparent.

“And, when the Homeshare finishes, people often say they’ve made friends for life.”

You can find out more about the Homeshare Association on https://homeshareassociation.org/

Or contact Amanda through: enquiries@homeshareassociation.org