Support service putting pressure on housing budget

A support service for elderly people living in sheltered housing In Kent is putting "severe pressure" on a council's entire housing budget, a report has revealed.

The Sheltered Plus scheme, which covers 127 properties in Canterbury and Whitstable, had to be subsidised by taxpayers to the tune of £200,000 last year.

A report heard by Canterbury City Council's (CCC) overview committee said the service run by the authority was significantly over budget and needed major changes to make significant savings.

The service, set up in 2018, sees council housing blocks manned overnight in case residents need reassurance, as well as providing laundry services.

When it was established, councillors guaranteed the scheme would go unchanged for its first two years, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

As the laundry and night watch services do not count as "landlord services", tenants have to pay for them via service charges, but the service is propped up by funds from the Housing Revenue Account (HRA).

The service covers residents living in Whitgift Court, Collard House and Cranmer House in Canterbury, and Lang Court in Whitstable.

In 2024/25, there was an unfunded budget shortfall of £33.70 per property per week on average, equating to more than £218,000 in total.

The committee was also told that fewer people were applying for the scheme, with Sheltered Plus properties vacant for an average of 19 weeks between tenants.

The council's whole sheltered housing service lost £576,000 in total last year, with the vast majority coming from lost income on empty properties.

The report called this "completely unsustainable" and recommended that laundry and night reassurance services be scrapped in their current format, subject to a consultation with residents to find alternatives.

Councillor Pip Hazelton, cabinet member for housing at CCC, told the committee the proposals were a "really well-considered and evidence-based approach to modernising our services".

She added: "It balances financial sustainability with the needs of tenants.

"By embracing technological advances in telecare, telehealth and CCTV, we can enhance safety and support without the need for overnight staff while ensuring central control is always there in the event of an emergency."

The committee voted on 22 May to commence a consultation, which started in late May and lasts until August, including one-on-one meetings with all tenants.

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