MPs: Build bungalows to ‘age-proof ’ housing
A NEW wave of bungalows and ‘care villages’ must be built to house the growing elderly population, MPs said last night.
Handymen should also be provided by councils to carry out odd jobs such as changing lightbulbs and help pensioners stay safe in their homes.
And those needing to downsize should be able to call a national telephone line for advice on how to ‘declutter’.
The recommendations came in a report by the Commons communities select committee, which called for a national strategy for older people’s housing. It said new homes should be ‘age-proofed’ so they can meet the current and future needs of older people.
Planning laws should encourage the building of more housing for older people, the MPs said, and town halls made to identify a target proportion of new housing for the elderly and produce strategies on how to meet their needs.
Britain has an ageing population, with the number of over-65s predicted to almost double to 19million by 2050. And around half of over-75s live alone, according to charity Age UK.
The report said new sheltered accommodation or care villages, with communal areas and help nearby for those who need it, could be a solution – easing pressure on the NHS and social care system. Committee chairman Clive Betts said: ‘The right kind of housing can help people stay healthy and support them to live independently. This can help reduce the need for home or residential care, bringing real benefits to the individual and also relieving pressure on the health service.
‘A properly funded telephone advice service, bringing together information on everything from repairs and heating to moving and care options, would help people to make the right choices and live comfortably whether in their present homes or by moving to different accommodation.’
Bungalows are particularly popular, with a survey in Bedfordshire finding 61 per cent of elderly people wanted one. But many developers refuse to build them because they cannot sell them for as much as two-storey homes.
The report said: ‘We believe that, given the enduring popularity of bungalows among older people and their accessibility features, more councils and developers should consider the feasibility of building bungalows.’
The committee also called for more funding for ‘home improvement agencies’, which provide handyman services for older people to carry out tasks such as basic repairs and spotting hazards. There are currently 200 of these agencies around the country but MPs want more, saying they played an important role in ensuring the homes of elderly people who want to ‘stay put’ are ‘comfortable, healthy and safe’.