Written evidence submitted by Pat Ramsey [DPH 047]
Introduction
I received the initial information about this issue because I am a member of the East of England Regional Stakeholder Network. Members of the Regional Stakeholder Networks were invited a sign a petition about the lack of suitable housing for wheelchair users, alongside MPs. I completed the associated questionnaires as a Manager working in the voluntary sector for a disability charity, which provides advice, information and support. Our organization has been involved in assisting many, many clients going through the process of finding, or adapting, suitable housing, and applying for Disabled Facility Grants.
We also help them with completing additional forms, for example, about VAT exemptions that can apply to parts of the work, or fittings, when adapting a property. Also, we are often asked to talk through correspondence that clients have received about their housing situation in general, and support them to collect together all of the paperwork that has to be submitted to Gateway to Home Choice for ‘re-banding’ when all their circumstances need to be fully recognised.
The reasons why people need the support of the charity’s is because of the number of people with disabilities who have never completed online forms, struggle with completing paper forms because writing can be physically difficult for them. Many do not use IT and have no broadband connection; also they may have difficulty reading and writing in general, due to diagnosed, or undiagnosed, dyslexia or dyspraxia, other neurodiversity problems, or because they process information more slowly. They are simply overwhelmed by the length of the form (40+ pages) and the size of the task, the terminology used and what is at stake for them and what they already have and could potentially lose if they do not complete the form correctly.
Our catchment area covers all of Ipswich, its suburbs and surrounding villages, and south-east Suffolk. We have to work with three local councils - one where there are areas that come within the top 10 percent of deprived areas in the country and where destitution has been identified.
In addition, I am a Statutory Consultee on disability issues for Ipswich Borough Council's Town Planning and Development directorate. A massive housing development (3,500 homes) on the north-eastern fringe of Ipswich has recently started to be built. The outline plans for two small areas have gone out to consultation thus far, and I have reported back concerns on both occasions, about the extremely low level (2.3%) of accessible housing. This is despite the last census showing that 21% of the population of Ipswich had identified as having a disability. This is nearly 5% higher than the national average.
I viewed the recording of the Select Committee Meeting held on 18 March 2024 before putting forward these comments.
Pat Ramsey
Bureau Manager
Ipswich Disabled Advice Bureau 28 March 2024
East of England Regional Stakeholder Network
What has been your experience of finding housing that is suitable for your
needs?
The first thoughts that come to mind is how long it takes for people with disabilities, or parents with a child with disabilities, to access suitable accommodation after a decision is made that they need to move to a more suitable home. Suitable accommodation is in short supply, and this does not just apply to our catchment area, or indeed Suffolk. Demand is outstripping supply across the country, for both social housing and owner occupiers.
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What have been the main barriers to you accessing a suitable home?
A possibly little known fact is that the majority of adults with differing types of disabilities live alone. This probably applies to over 50% of the charity’s clients and we work with nearly 3,000 people a year. It also means that more housing is required overall, although not all of that needs to be adapted for mobility problems or wheelchair use.
Most of our clients live in social housing provided by their local authority or housing association. They often have to move to something more suitable, especially if they develop, physical disabilities or existing conditions progress, and it is not possible to adapt their current home to meet their requirements. However, moving to a new home can mean that they are no longer near to their informal social support network.
It can be a very lengthy wait - at least a year - for suitable housing to become available. This frequently needs to be on the ground floor and with all the accommodation on one level e.g. a ground floor flat or bungalow. Buildings where people with mobility problems have to depend on a lift to leave the building is not a safe alternative, as lifts do not function during emergencies unless appropriately insulated and fully insulated lifts are very expensive and rare.
In addition, finding ‘suitable accommodation’ may not be the end of the story, because to be fully accessible to meet the needs of a new tenant, further adaptations may still be needed. These include removing the bath and altering the bathroom to function as a wet room where they can sit whilst having a shower, which is the most common adaptation. Also, insufficient safe space to accommodate an electric wheelchair, or mobility scooter, and somewhere to charge up their batteries is a less common requirement, but much harder to provide.
Many other clients are living in privately rented accommodation and they too, usually, have to join the social housing waiting list, if their accommodation becomes unsuitable for their needs. The landlords of privately rented accommodation, will very rarely, if ever, agree to any adaptations being made at all to their property, not even a ramp replacing steps at the front door to accommodate a wheelchair; or removing a bath and replacing it with a shower cubicle
A frequent situation is that a tenant did not have a disability when they moved into the privately rented property, many years previously. Length of tenure does not mean that a landlord is more likely to consider adaptions. Their main concern is whether adaptations will negatively affect the value of their property, which they may not own outright but have taken out a mortgage to purchase.
Legislation, requiring private landlords to permit adaptations and/or making certain features mandatory could significantly and negatively affect the overall availability of homes for rent in general. Availability of these dropped with the implementation of Universal Credit and since the Covid-19 pandemic, because the value of property fell and interest rates increased.
Did you seek a new-build accessible home, or did you make adaptations to
make an existing property accessible?
Most of our clients do not have this option, as only about 6% of our clients are actually ‘owner/occupiers’. Whilst the Minister for Levelling Up, Housing and, Communities, during the meeting of the Select Committee on 18/3/2024, mentioned that older people developing a disability accounts for a high percentage of all people with disabilities, but this is definitely not the experience of our charity. The disability benefit that is available for people, over the age of 65 years, when making their initial claim is Attendance Allowance. The number of these forms that we assist people to complete is very small in comparison to those of younger people, who need support to make an initial claim for Personal Independence Payment.
Not being as able, or mobile, as you were when you were younger is not a disability per sè. The number of people moving from a house to a bungalow, or generally downsizing, is possible because older people form the majority of the owner/occupiers amongst our clients.
How long did your search for an accessible home take?
It can be a long wait for suitable social housing to become available – at least a year in many cases. Accommodation on one level e.g. ground floor flat or bungalow is the main criteria but space for a wheelchair or mobility scooter and a dropped kerb so as to be able to drive it onto the road. Adaptations may still be needed e.g. an electric hoist in the bedroom, adaptations in the kitchen e.g. height of the work surfaces and whether a wall oven is needed and whether they need space for a fridge and a freezer rather than the two being combined.
A search for a suitable single property to buy can also be a lengthy process and that can need some further adaptations.
What impact did your housing situation have on your mental health?
We particularly notice an increase in depression and a decline in self-confidence in clients who struggle to cope in their current homes and are on the waiting list for a more suitable home. This is mainly because of the time it takes, and the level of the difficulties that they have to cope with, in the meantime and how much help they need from others to do tasks that they previously could do independently and will be able to do again in a more accessible home. Also, the level of pain that they are experiencing which would not be the case if they could move, and possibly the cost of getting to medical appointments by taxi etc.
What support have you received in finding suitable housing?
The system used to allocate social housing and vacancies that housing association have, according to need in Suffolk and north-east Essex is ‘Gateway to Home Choice’. This is managed by five individual district and borough councils. Our organisation’s catchment area means that we work with three of those councils.
[If applicable] What support did the council provide? What did they do well,
and what could they have done better?
Support varies between the three local authorities, two of them deal with issues more quickly than the third one does, but this is reflected in all aspects of how they deal with housing and homelessness in general.
However, in fairness, the third local authority is the result of an amalgamation of two smaller district councils, one of whom did not have any housing stock of its own because they sold all of their social housing to a housing association in the early 1990s.
Setting up an account with Gateway to Home Choice can be a long winded process, the more so for those who need to move due to, what GTHC classify as ‘medical grounds’. Their policies and practice are not always synchronised. The application form itself requires a lot of information and a number of documents have to be produced as well. This takes 3-4 weeks to process, and if anything is missing, or there is a query, an applicant re-joins the processing queue.
In addition, a person needing to move on ‘medical grounds’, should be sent a lengthy medical form, about their situation and medical history to complete, and have to supply evidence from their GP and any other medical professionals that they are in contact with. If GTHC insist on a letter from a GP rather than an abridged printout of their medical history (as accepted by the DWP), there is a cost of up to £50.00. Hence, it can be at least 10 to 12 weeks before applicants are allocated a banding and can begin to bid for suitable properties. This initial banding is often a low one that does not reflect their needs and so a banding review has to be requested. The applicant is required to produce more evidence to cover that interim period including another letter from the GP, costing another £50.00.
The onus is on the applicant, whether a person with a disability, or not, to reply to requests from GTHC for further information despite the applicant signing a declaration for GTHC to be able to directly approach relevant agencies to gather further information.
Also, at some stage in the process a Home Assessment by an Occupational Therapist from Social Services has to take place for any one moving into a social housing on medical grounds, whether or not they have lived in social housing previously. There is always a waiting list of several weeks before this can take place. The OT’s recommendation as to whether the present accommodation is deemed to be unsuitable is vital. (OTs will supply suitable aids to assist in the meantime e.g. raised toilet seat and extra handrail for both sides of steps and staircases, perching stool for activities in the kitchen)
In addition, disabled people and homelessness are not mutually exclusive. People with disabilities can be the subject of ‘no fault ‘evictions from privately rented accommodation and they are supposed to challenge this in Court, to avoid being labelled as making themselves ‘intentionally homeless’ in the same way as people in a similar position who do not have a disability.
Were you able to find all the information you needed?
It can be very difficult to do this because increasingly communications with local authority housing departments have to be done by asking a question by email and then waiting for somebody to respond by phone. The only person that you can speak to directly by phone is the receptionist, who then tells you to do the above!
The third paragraph of the ‘Introduction’ on page 1 applies to this type of situation as well as when completing forms. Therefore, without support, the result is that at the end of a telephone conversation, the person needing the information may not have assimilated sufficient to make an appropriate response. The fact that the only access to the internet that they may have is on a smart phone, or they do not have an email address, probably means that a number people just give up and accept their current situation unless they can get some help from an organisation..
If you have used it, how was your experience of applying for the Disabled
Facilities Grant?
During the Select Committee Meeting on 18 March 2024, there was discussion about who would be eligible for a Disabled Facilities Grant and how the amount awarded can vary depending on the financial circumstances of the applicant. Briefly, the main issues taken into consideration are as follow:-
Personal Independence Payments and Disabled Living Allowance for Children are not included in the calculation as these are non-means tested welfare benefits. They are awarded to help meet the increased costs that a person with a disability has when doing the basic activities of daily life; and when getting about e.g. taxis to medical appointments etc.
Savings are taken into consideration – the savings allowance that is exempt is £6,000 for a household. If the extension is for a child, their parents savings are not taken into consideration. Landlords can get a grant without their income and savings being taken into account. However, their local council may ask for the property to be only rented to people with a disability for a period of time, usually a minimum of five years.
Whether the tenant, or owner occupier could successfully apply for a loan for some or all of the cost, and repay it is also considered.
The household income is taken into consideration and this can comprise just earnings, just Universal Credit or a combination of Universal Credit and earnings.
Universal Credit is a means tested benefit and has six components:-
People, who do not have any other income e.g. not working, can claim a Personal Allowance component. This also applies to people who are unable to work due to a disability or because of caring duties for a person with disabilities covering 35 hours or more per week. This amounts to:-
Singe person (25+) 368.74 per month
Couple living at same address (25+) 578.82 per month
In addition, if they can only work part time hours, they may be eligible to retain a ‘top up’ of their Personal Allowance in addition to their salaries. The formula is that for every £1.00 earned from working, the Universal Credit payment is reduced by £0.55p. Therefore the remaining amount of Universal Credit is retained as a ‘top up’ to their earnings and the two amounts together are classified as their ‘household income’.
There is currently a requirement for them to work 16 hours per week or earn £165.28 per week.
Other applicable components can be claimed. However, there is an overall benefit cap of £14,753 for a single person and £22,020 for couples, or single parents whose children live with them.
Did the Grant cover the cost of all the adaptations you needed?
A Disabled Facilities Grant may not cover everything needed, especially if a dropped kerb for wheelchair access is required as well as other adaptations to the actual accommodation. It is also more complex because dropped kerbs come within the remit of whoever is responsible for highways which is usually a County Council, rather than a District or Borough Council as is the case with housing.
Online guidance is not very clear about whether a Disabled Facilities Grant can definitely be used for installing a dropped kerb or not. However, if one is required, an initial non-refundable payment of a £400.00 deposit is required before any feasibility study can take place. Some houses are not suitable for a dropped kerb even if the neighbouring house has one!
[If applicable] Have your housing associations/landlords been supportive?
Housing associations can often provide appropriate housing, without the need for further adaptations but their housing stock is limited compared to need. As mentioned previously landlords of privately rented property tend not to be helpful.
What more should the Government do to support disabled people to access suitable housing?
Currently, there is not sufficient accessible housing to meet need. It is also viewed as something unusual that is only needed by a few people.
A point was made during the meeting on 18 March 2024 by the Minister, that a significant amount of the housing stock was old, which she saw as a problem. However, I would suggest that it has the advantage for people with disabilities of having larger sized rooms, which makes manoeuvring a wheelchair around indoors a lot easier compared to homes that have been built in more recent decades, or are about to be built. Also, they usually have a decent sized hall, which can be used to store an electric wheelchair or mobility scooter, and be able to charge up their batteries indoors. (The alternative is an electrical connection to a garden shed, which is not so secure or weatherproof)
Also, older houses, particular that built as social housing, have sufficiently large gardens to accommodate decent sized ground floor extensions; but this will not always be an option going forward, because the gardens for new build housing are very small (and getting smaller) and part of the garden might equally be needed to provide parking for a second car. (The provision of just one parking space is being encouraged on new developments, with the aim of more people walking, cycling or using public transport.)
This is a particular issue with social housing, but there is also a lack of bungalows and ground floor flats on the market for potential owner occupiers as well.
What should be the Government’s short-term priorities to support disabled
people before the next general election?
A petition has been made to Parliament and also a House of Commons Select Committee has met, both focusing on the lack of accessible accommodation for people with disabilities. Hence, I think that there should be a strong publicity promotion by Government about the need for developers, architects and builders of ‘new build’ housing to include a range of specific homes that meet differing disability needs and not think that all that is needed is ramped access. They should be providing homes for communities, and communities include a range of people with a range of needs.
Also, attention should be drawn to the fact that communities should be inclusive and so all single storey buildings should not be clustered together and/or in special gated communities. Where there is a mixture of types of homes and age groups in the same streets, or clusters, supportive networks form that are good for everyone. This also encourages integration, not only of age groups but different ethnicities and occupations as well as people with disabilities. The people who live there look out for each other and provide informal support in difficult times.
Similarly, although many people with disabilities live alone, it does not mean that a home with one bedroom is sufficient, simply because they are living alone. They can have electric wheelchairs, or mobility scooters that need charging and need the space to do so, safely and without the possibility of theft because they have to be charged in a garden shed or the entrance to some flats. Hence they may need a second bedroom, or other space, in the same way as somebody undertaking home dialysis has equipment that needs an extra bedroom.
What longer-term policies would you like to see, to deliver more accessible housing?
In addition to continuing with what is detailed above as a priority, especially with the number of housing developments currently underway.
More publicity and ‘education’ is needed to make it known how many people actually have a disability and a need for an accessible home to be met. Also, that ‘no size fits all’ and so flexibility when designing housing developments is needed. A number of people with disabilities drive a car adapted for their needs but another household member may need to drive a standard vehicle – and both will need a parking space adjacent to their home.
A person walking with a frame, or a wheelchair user, needs adequate space in their home, as well as in public buildings to get around, and so this should be ‘the norm’ for house building and not the exception.
What more could local authorities do to support disabled residents?
Housing is one area where accessibility to information could be improved a lot. Our experience, as a charity, is that if you cannot read and absorb information that is available online and reply accurately to questions on line, then people have to find an organisation like ourselves. It is not only people with disabilities who are struggling with this and it wastes a lot of everyone’s time.
Provide clear and easy instructions are needed, on paper as well as digitally so they are accessible i.e. not on web cams etc. Reponses should be accepted in a range of formats, not only by email.
Take on board the fact that people with disabilities who cannot work , or only work for part time hours, will not have an income commensurate with being able to get a mortgage to purchase a home.
Also, assess the social housing stock that they have, to see whether some relatively minor alterations could mean that more housing could be accessible.
For example, my house was built in 1969 and, while ramps would be needed at the back and front, it could be accessible as both doorways are wider than what the Building Regulations require. However, getting from the kitchen to lounge/dining room, and vice versa, could be a problem as the doorway between them is narrower than either of the outer doors and does not comply with current Building Regulations.
What should the Committee recommend in its Report?
There needs to be a realisation of the number of people with disabilities who need accessible homes, compared to the number of homes available and/or being built or adapted at the present time. This includes those for owner occupation as well as social housing.
Look over existing social housing stock for minor issues that, if corrected, could make a home more accessible. The changes could be carried out when a property is between tenancies.
Consider the design of future homes to avoid as much retrofitting in the future as possible. e.g. a staircase that is straight with no turns so that a chair lift can be fitted; downstairs toilet that is a suitable size to allow somebody to transfer from a wheelchair, rather than the size of a broom cupboard.
Review the processes for funding for adaptations to homes including the Disability Facilities Grant; and review plans for the amount of social housing, and housing that is for sale, that it is planned where all the rooms are on the ground floor e.g. bungalows and ground floor flats.
April 2024