1. the future of existing sheltered housing: Ashford case studies Richard Robinson Ashford Borough Council Patrick Devlin Pollard Thomas Edwards architects

5. Sheltered Housing ~ What are we doing?

6. Ashford – Some Background  largest borough (area) in Kent  growth area: pop n expected to double between 2001 and 2031  disproportionate increase in older people over and above ageing population  high percentage of owner-occupation  5000 council homes: 1200 of these specifically for 50+  ageing sheltered accommodation – some arguably unfit for purpose  recognise need to up our game in light of these issues, and likely future expectations (HAPPI etc)

8. Different Schemes – Different Problems  We have 12 schemes (our 13 th we’re demolishing to build a PFI-funded extra care scheme with the County Council)  4 schemes are probably okay for the medium term  so we are focussing on improving 8 schemes  mix of urban and rural schemes; range of problems  How can we get this done?

9. Farrow Court, South Ashford

10.  reasonably modern (1986) scheme  all units self-contained 1 beds (built as a cat 2.5 but never truly operated to that level)  has 7 bed recuperative care facility built 2004 adjoining scheme and an Age UK day centre  so why do this scheme first? Farrow Court, South Ashford

11.  key advantage is it has a significant amount of land around it  it is very close to an estate we have recently regenerated (Stanhope PFI project)  has potential for higher rise, possible mixed tenure, even mixed use development  for these reasons we feel it could sustain a significant degree of additional development (total of 83 units; 47 extra!)  and it becomes the CATALYST for everything else Farrow Court, South Ashford

19.  likely to be around £6.5M build cost  will obviously need all the detailed things done i.e. design, planning permission, consultation etc  should involve no decanting though!!!  will create 40+ extra units and better communal facilities  but unlocks the potential to do the other 7 schemes by creating extra units at the beginning of the project  funding??? May be outside HRA (GF?) or more HRA borrowing  whole HRA reform issue creates uncertainties but ……

20. Cotton Hill House, Hamstreet

21.  Built 1976  mix of flats and bungalows; 5 x bedsits + 29 x 1 beds  access issues for clients with mobility problems: stairs everywhere with no possibility of lifts in current layout  rural location but reasonable facilities in village  excellent community feel to scheme; is part of village and village is part of scheme  some unique features (pond; wildlife)

22. Cotton Hill House, Hamstreet  pleasant rural setting but needs access to facilities beyond village  has a good sense of community: what makes this scheme different?  in a sense the “isolation” promotes a sense of community and mutual support in addition to our Scheme Manager service

28.  of two options considered actively pursuing 2 nd option  creates an extra 12 units with a mix of 1 and 2 bed flats, some 2 bed bungalows and some 2 bed houses  likely to be mixed tenure (including for sale)  dramatically improves the standard of communal facilities  addresses all current access problems and eliminates bedsits Cotton Hill House, Hamstreet

29. How have we got where we are now?  appointed PTEa to provide expertise  met with residents and staff to gauge views to support inspection findings  draft plans developed  further consultation with whole range of stakeholders: what would they value in redeveloping the schemes  next: member approval / finance

30.  Estimate cost of building works to be c. £42.5M  need to build in detailed design, planning costs  decanting costs, income loss etc  All of this at a time when Ashford is likely to have borrow £111m re: HRA buy-out  we’ve ruled nothing in or out  we may have to transfer Farrow Court to GF from HRA; or  increase the level of borrowing on the buy-out if possible Important Issues

31. Options  we will actively consider selling one site as we do not feel it is economic (for us) to redevelop  we will pursue mixed tenure options on every site for redevelopment to stretch what we can do as far as possible  we plan to build some units for sale as this will cross-subsidise the build/refurb cost on our own units  it may be we need to build first to generate funds  we will aim to shape our support services around the mixed tenure developments  could be the biggest “single” project we ever undertake (12 – 15 years!)

32. Richard Robinson Ashford Borough Council richard.robinson@ashford.gov.uk Patrick Devlin Pollard Thomas Edwards architects patrick.devlin@ptea.co.uk