Is your home ready to look after you?

Help to Adapt An Introduction to the Help to Adapt Pilot scheme

Aims for today Provide an outline of the Help to Adapt scheme. Discuss referrals and promotion of the scheme. Discuss potential joint working Identify key contacts within your area. Better understand of your service and priorities Answer any questions you may have

What is the Help to Adapt Pilot project? Help to Adapt is a Scottish Government initiative designed to help older people live independently in their own home for as long as possible. Help to Adapt encourages homeowners over 60 years old to consider making alterations to their property to ensure it will meet their current and future needs. Uniquely, Help to Adapt helps homeowners to fund adaptations by using the equity in their own home. Help to Adapt is one of several options available and is not designed to replace statutory schemes.

Why is the Help to Adapt Pilot project relevant to you? We are making contact with each of the pilot areas to help us identify people who may benefit from our service. You may meet people who may be interested in the scheme because they do not want to wait for an assessment or do not meet the criteria for the provision of a statutory service. We need help to spread the word to people we work with and meet through work but just as importantly, through people we know personally: such as family, friends and neighbours

Why did the Scottish Government develop Help to Adapt? Age, Home and Community: A Strategy for Housing for Scotland’s Older People: 2012 – 2021 Better use of existing housing Pilot fits into National Outcome “ Our people are able to maintain their independence as they get older and are able to access appropriate support when they need it.”

Help to Adapt in context

What is the scheme trying to achieve? It’s an innovative scheme, the first of its kind in the UK. Specialist OT assessment and recommendations It will help older homeowners use the equity in their homes to apply for a loan of up to 30k to pay for adaptations that will enable them to remain in their home Provides a project manager to see the work through from beginning to end, taking away any concerns the home owner might have.

Help to Adapt & its relationship with Local Authorities Link Group as Managing Agent for the 2 year pilot. Evaluation of the pilot – national roll out if successful. Does not replace the duty of local authorities to assess need and meet eligible assessed need. Mandatory grants and scheme of assistance will continue. Help to Adapt is an alternative option or may complement statutory adaptations.

Help to Adapt and its relationship with LAs A complementary service as Help to Adapt May fund works that are not eligible through a Scheme of Assistance Helps older people plan ahead and arrange adaptations to help them remain at home and avoid crisis Promotes the preventative agenda Promotes greater personalisation, choice and control over the timing of adaptations. Promotes greater personalisation choice and control over the type of adaptation.

The pilot areas Argyll and Bute Council City of Edinburgh Council East Dunbartonshire Council East Lothian Council East Renfrewshire Council Falkirk Council Glasgow City Council North Lanarkshire Council Renfrewshire Council Scottish Borders Council Stirling Council West Lothian Council

Eligibility and types of work Home owners: may be joint but all must agree to the works and equity loan 60 years old or over and in need of an adaptation now or in the near future Homeowner must have at least 80% equity in their property Not intended for work eligible under SoA Can be used for works not eligible under SoA and may compliment SoA works (requiring co-ordination of work) Cannot be used to pay for 20% contribution of SoA Not means tested.

What support does Help to Adapt provide? A dedicated team to: Provide a personalised assessment. Assess and advise on the feasibility & suitability of options. Agree detailed specifications. Seek valuations, planning applications and building warrant applications if required Procurement of work – either through main contractor or homeowner’s choice of contractor (advising on tendering and quality) Project manage the adaptation works and links with legal requirements and loan application with SG

How does the loan work? Maximum loan of £30,000 No minimum amount and can have multiple loans up to a maximum of £30,000. Loan secured against the homeowner’s property Homeowner must have at least 80% equity in their property No monthly interest payments and no compound interest Legal costs can be added to the loan Project management fee of 12%

How does the loan work? Loan repaid when homeowner sells the house or dies Amount repaid is linked to the value of the property Property valued by an independent surveyor with a mechanism for applicant to query the valuation Value of property falls: homeowner pays back less than they borrowed (standard condition that the property must be maintained in good and sufficient repair) Value of property increases: the amount repaid will be higher than the amount borrowed but with capped protection against the impact of high increases in house prices

Why contact Help to Adapt? Help to Adapt may be of particular interest to people aged 60 or over who: Like their home and want to make it easier to manage as they get older. Prefer to plan ahead and remain in control. Do not qualify or do not want to wait for statutory assistance. Do not want the stress or having to organise works themselves. Want a personalised adaptation.

Getting the right adaptation © Link Group Ltd 2015 Incorporate the views of the homeowner and their family Provide a clear, detailed specification to meet needs of user Offer options within financial constraints Innovative in design or specification Preventative and enabling – promoting independence, privacy, safety and ‘re-ablement’

Getting the right adaptation

How to contact the Help to Adapt Team If you know anyone who could benefit from the scheme, the Help to Adapt team would be delighted to take referrals, answer any immediate queries and provide further information. The team would also be happy to be contacted to discuss visiting groups or meetings to explain how the scheme could be of benefit to owner occupiers in the area. Please contact us!

The Help to Adapt Team Angela Gardiner – Contract Manager Kelli McCurrach – Help to Adapt Advisor Louise McGill - Help to Adapt Advisor Joanna Morrison – Housing Occupational Therapist Rab Brown - Technical Advisor Helena Tuer – Case Worker David Ogilvie – Case Worker Tom McGregor- Technical Advisor will be joining the team later this month

How to contact the Help to Adapt Team For more information Visit our website: Talk to one of our helpful advisors or request a call back on us at: Or write to us (or visit us) at Watling House, Callendar Business Park, Callendar Road Falkirk FK1 1XR