Elected Member Briefing - Update on housing adaptations to local homes

About this Briefing Note

Report by: Elaine Ritchie, Strategic Lead, Housing and Communities

EMBN Number: 048-24

Date: 29 May 2024

Subject: Update on housing adaptations to local homes

Responsible Officer: Nicola Lennon, Service Manager, Capital Projects and New Builds

Details

Purpose

This briefing note updates members on our work to allow people to live independently in their own home for as long as possible by carrying out adaptations to homes.

Briefing Information

One of the priorities of our Local Housing Strategy 2022-27 is to Deliver more homes for people with varying needs.

We want to provide more accessible homes, wheelchair homes and supported accommodation to enable people to live independently and well for as long as possible. One of the ways we can do this is through property adaptations.

Housing adaptations are modifications made to homes to make them more accessible and safer for disabled and older people. Examples of housing adaptations include:

• Improvements to access (ramps, level thresholds, automatic opening doors, steplifts)
• Internal door widening
• Wet floor level access showers
• Wheelchair accessible kitchens
• Stairlifts or through floor lifts
• Grab rails
• Extra stair rails
• Major adaptations such as accessible ground floor extensions or changes ot the internal layout

Council housing - latest performance

During 2023/24 Perth and Kinross Council spent a total of £725,000 on 477 adaptations to our Council housing. This was made up of:

• 369 minor adaptations
• 108 major adaptations

Broken down by Housing Locality, the following number of adaptations were carried out:

Letham

• Major adaptations - 24
• Minor adaptations - 59

North

• Major - 24
• Minor - 93

South

• Major - 25
• Minor - 102

City

• Major - 33
• Minor - 133

So far in 2024/25 we have carried out 7 major housing adaptations and 47 minor adaptations.

Adaptations to privately owned homes

Adaptations to private homes are carried out by the Care & Repair Service, which provides assistance and support to people with disability and older people who are homeowners or private tenants. The service is managed by Caledonia Housing Association.

The year-end position for 2023/24 saw a budget of £699,656 fully spent with a small overspend of just over £5,000 on major adaptations.

•  The number of completed major adaptations - 191
•  The number of small repairs completed - 107 plus 10 ramps

It should be noted that the Council has agreed £400,000 of savings from the Care & Repair budget, and this will have an effect on the number of non-Council adaptations that will be possible in the future.

Caledonia can be contacted by calling 0800 678 1228.