Directorate of Housing
& Community Services
GUIDE TO THE SUPPORTED HOUSING SERVICE
______
GUIDE TO THE SUPPORTED HOUSING SERVICE
Introduction
The City Council aims to help its older tenants retain their independence and feel secure in their homes. The Supported Housing Service is designed to help improve these tenants quality of life and this booklet explains what services are available.
The housing needs of older people can vary due to their age, health and aspirations.This is why the Supported Housing Service offers person-centredsupport and options for how the support is delivered. The Service is also committed to treating everyone equally and fairly, respecting and providing for cultural and religious needs, in accordance with the Council’s Equality and Diversity policy.
The Supported Housing Service is available to anyone aged 60 years and over. This booklet should serve as a useful reference point for prospective and existing supported housing tenants, their relatives and carers.
What services are available?
There are three types of service available, namely:-
-sheltered housing with on-site support;
-grouped housing with on-site support; &
-dispersed alarms with floating support.
AllSupported Housing clients hold tenancies subject to the Council’s standard terms and conditions; therefore, they have the same rights as other tenants and are expected to live reasonably independently. The Council’s Supported Housing staff will not provide personal care or home care services directly, but they will help with the arrangement of these care services through other agencies and carers.
Sheltered Housing
There are three sheltered housing schemes, at:-
Derek Miller Court, Newland Street West, Lincoln.
De Wint Court, Bowden Drive, Lincoln.
St Botolph’s Court, High Street Lincoln.
These comprise bedsit/one bedroom flats, which are contained in a single block. With all the accommodation being under one roof, the residents are offered a feeling of security and community spirit. There are communal bathrooms and laundry facilities as well as common rooms, where residents can meet and take part in leisure activities.
There are two resident Scheme Managers who provide an on-site support service, 7 days a week. They also provide an out of hours stand-by service, to deal with any emergency situations that may occur at night.
Each flat is fitted with alarm equipment, giving each resident the opportunity of calling for help and assistance, whenever they need it. Calls from the alarm equipment will go directly to the Scheme Managers, when they are on duty; otherwise, they will go to the Council’s Emergency Control Centre, from where the appropriate help and assistance can be summoned.
Grouped Housing
There are five grouped housing schemes, at:-
Broomhill/Sorrel Court/Clematis Approach, Birchwood, Lincoln.
Lenton Green, Cabourne Avenue, Ermine, Lincoln.
Risby Green, Scawby Crescent, Hartsholme Lincoln.
St. Clement’s Court/Lillicrap Court, Chapel Lane, Lincoln.
Tom Ward Court/Kingsley Street, Lincoln.
These comprise small blocks of one bedroom flats or bungalows grouped around a community centre, where the residents can meet and take part in leisure activities.
There is a resident Scheme Manager, who provides an on-site support service each weekday. The flats and bungalows are fitted with alarm equipment, giving each resident the opportunity of calling for help and assistance, whenever they need it; in the same way as described under Sheltered Housing, above.
Dispersed Alarms
These are a form of alarm equipment installed in tenants homes, enabling them to call for help and assistance, whenever they need it. The equipment is connected to the Council’s Emergency Control Centre, from where calls can be dealt with throughout the day and night.
The service is backed up by routine and emergency response visits provided by a team of five Supported Housing Officers. It is designed to be support from a distance, allowing each client the freedom to live independently, while giving them the reassurance that help can be summoned quickly, at times when they need it.
The Role of Scheme Managers
Scheme Managers are employed at the sheltered and grouped housing schemes to proactively help the residents improve their quality of life as well as reacting to requests for help and assistance. An assessment of support and care needs is carried out for each prospective client, to ensure that the service is suitable for them. Then, on entering the service, each new resident is asked to sign up to a Support Plan, which is used as a reference point for how the support service will be delivered by the Scheme Manager(s). The Support Plan includes the following :-
Personal details
Risk Assesment
Routine calling and visiting services, to be provided by the Scheme Manager.
Information on Special Needs, such as sensory impairments.
Daily living skills and the need to involve other agencies or carers.
As part of the process, each resident will agree what outcomes they would like to achieve with the help of the Scheme Manager, under the following headings:-
Economic Wellbeing
Enjoy and Achieve
Being Healthy
Staying Safe
Making a Positive Contribution
The emphasis is on empowering each resident to take reasonable risks in achieving their social ambitions while helping them to remain safe, healthy and secure. Support Plans are regularly reviewed to take account of changes of circumstances and relative needs.
The Role of Supported Housing Officers
The team of Supported Housing Officers have a similar role to that of the Scheme Managers (described above) and provide an equivalent service for tenants with dispersed alarm equipment. There are two main differences, namely:-
-clients normally enter the service as existing tenants, so they do not undergo an initial assessment of housing support and care needs; &
-services are provided on a less intensive floating support basis, which means that the service standard for routine visits is a minimum of once every 8 weeks (compared to the daily call service at the sheltered and grouped housing schemes).
All tenants with dispersed alarm equipment, who receive the support service, are asked to sign up to a Support Plan in the same way as the residents of sheltered and grouped dwellings (described above).
Client Involvement in Developing the Service
The Council is keen to involve Supported Housing clients in the arrangement of social activities and the development of its support services. This is done through the promotion of Residents Associations (for arranging social activities) and by arranging
quarterly Supported Housing Residents Forums (to consult clients on policies and procedures) at each of the sheltered and grouped housing schemes.
Service Standards
The Supported Housing Service is subject to stringent quality controls, administered by the Lincolnshire County Council under the Government’s Supporting People Initiative. This means that the Service is regularly inspected to ensure that it is operating in accordance with national guidelines, in relation to:-
Assessment and Support Planning;
Security Health & Safety;
Safeguarding and Protection from Abuse;
Fair Access, Diversity and Inclusion; and
Client Involvement and Empowerment.
Paying for the Service
Under the Government’s Supporting People Initiative, charges for the support service have to be calculated separately from the property rental and service charges, to reflect the actual costs associated with providing the support. The current support charges are as follows:-
Sheltered Housing: £20.24
Grouped Housing: £11.66
Dispersed Alarms: £ 5.48
Housing Benefit cannot be claimed to cover these charges. However, anyone who is eligible for Housing Benefit to cover their property rental can claim Supporting People Grant to cover their support charge. Anyone not qualifying for Supporting People Grant (applying the “Housing Benefit rule”) may apply to the County Council for qualification through a Fairer Charging Assessment; this would take account of any further costs involved in purchasing necessary care services.
Applying for the Service
Applications for Sheltered or Grouped Housing should be made by contacting:-
The Property Shop,
City of Lincoln Council,
Beaumont Fee,
Lincoln LN1 1DE
Tel: 01522 873777
e-mail:
A customer information leaflet, providing information on the Council’s Choice-based Lettings System, is available from the Property Shop. It is also available for reference on the City Council’s website (
Applications for Dispersed Alarms and requests for further information about the service should be made by contacting:-
The Supported Housing Service
Tel: 01522 528752
e-mail:
More information about Supporting People can be found on the County Council’s website ( or by contacting:-
The Supporting People Team,
Lincolnshire County Council,
Orchard House, Orchard Street,
Lincoln LN1 1BA
Tel: 01522 554026
e-mail: