Inventing our future Collective action for a sustainable economy

7.88 Visiting or floating support, where support is provided in people’s homes, has expanded recently.
It has shown to be a very effective method of support as it is tailored, flexible and cost effective.
It can also help to ensure that service users are more dispersed, therefore moving away from a
ghetto culture which can cause hostilities. Floating support is very successful in maintaining
independence and most SP teams would like to extend services further.
7.89 SPERG has identified the lack of move-on accommodation, particularly for families, as an issue in
the Region. The Region’s Voluntary Hostels Group echoes this, identifying the need to free up
spaces in hostels by ensuring swift and effective move-on via nominations to permanent housing
for people who are ready to move. A lack of move-on accommodation can lead to hostels and
other temporary accommodation silting-up. This arises from a shortage of new lettings,
particularly of smaller accommodation, resulting in people with low support needs remaining in
hostels longer than necessary and running the danger of becoming institutionalised or having their
long-term independence compromised. It also means that earlier investment in schemes is not
being used efficiently to meet higher levels of need.
Learning disabilities
7.90 There has been a shift away from institutional care towards group-living in supported tenancies.
In the past there has been an over reliance on ‘shared accommodation‘. There is a continuing need
to expand the housing options for the increasing numbers of people with a learning disability who
are expecting to live in the community. SPERG argues that there should be a range of
accommodation available to cover the diverse needs of this group and the need to look at more
innovative models of housing as well as group homes, for example, cluster units, using assisted
technology, remodelling of sheltered housing or sharing sheltered provision with the elderly
(double usage). It should also be noted that service users with long-term mental health issues have
similar housing issues.
Developing services in the future
Regional Housing Strategy for the East of England: 2005–2010
7.91 There are structural issues over equity and access to services. The budgets which were merged into
the SP programme were nearly all budgets for tenants of social housing. The needs of people in
other tenures must now be included in the programme.
7.92 In some areas the pattern of support services has developed from the initiatives of individual
providers with a greater or lesser degree of overall planning. This has led to unevenness of service
availability, which SP teams wish to redress. New services will now be commissioned to meet gaps
in service identified in SP strategies, normally using competitive procurement processes.
7.93 It is essential to have effective engagement with a developing sub-regional agenda, and SPERG
will work with sub-regional housing groups in identifying ‘local‘ investment within the investment
themes. Sub-regional engagement is especially important in relation to ensuring that future needs
brought about by demographic changes and an ageing population are properly considered.
7.94 Other issues for the East of England are the housing needs of homeless families, refugees, teenage
parents and especially the victims of domestic violence. The main areas of concern are the
inappropriateness of accommodation, lack of move on accommodation for families and lack of
provision for differing ethnic needs. Work is in progress to consider a regional strategy for
domestic violence over the next six months and the priorities will be included in the 2007/08
allocation request.
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