Halton Housing Trust has teamed up with Halton Borough Council (HBC) to provide £208,000 in extra funding to adapt the area’s housing to meet the needs of elderly and disabled customers.

The massive cash injection comes on top of the Trust’s £440,000 annual budget already being spent on housing adaptations, bringing the total spent by the Trust to £648,000.

The additional funding was allocated to the Trust by HBC following an in-depth review into the need for adapted housing.  This was carried out by HBC in partnership with the Trust and other Registered Social Landlords (RSLs) working across Halton.  This will go some considerable way to improve the quality of life for disabled people now living in Halton. 

Although the additional £208,000 has been allocated to the Trust for the years 2008/09, there may be an opportunity to apply for more funding in future depending on the success of the current scheme.

Works to customers’ homes can include walk-in showers, ramps, grab rails, stair lifts, door entry systems and smoke alarms.  These are provided once an assessment and recommendation has been provided by the Council’s occupational therapists or community care workers.

Nick Atkin, Chief Executive of Halton Housing Trust, said: “We are absolutely delighted to have received such a significant investment from the Council. This will go some considerable way to significantly improving the quality of life for a number of our customers.        

“In addition to installing new adaptations we have also been working with the Council and the other RSLs in the Borough to introduce a number of changes that will improve the way adaptations are matched to people on waiting lists and improved sharing of resources between all housing providers.”

In 2007, the Accessible Homes Register, a project set up to match customers with special needs with adapted homes, was established by HBC to introduce a more proactive and robust approach towards particularly large adaptation work. The move, in addition to the extra funding, was strongly supported by the Trust and will significantly improve the provision of adapted accommodation across Halton. 

The Council has allocated an additional £467,000 to all RSL’s for housing adaptations across Halton. The Trust was eligible to a hefty £208,000 share based on the number of properties and its existing waiting list.

Nick continued: “We realise the importance of adaptation work in transforming people’s lives and fully intend to help many more customers on the back of this funding.

“The extra funding was only made possible thanks to the excellent partnership work we have in place with the Council and the commitment they have shown to addressing one of the key issues affecting the quality of life for Halton residents.  We look forward to building upon this relationship when carrying out other adaptations work in future.”
 
Since transfer took place in December 2005, the Trust has invested more than £1million in adaptations work. More than 286 major adaptations and 500 minor adaptations have been completed since transfer, to allow more people to live independently in their own homes.

Making sure that its services are tailored to meet the needs of its customers is important to the Trust and a customer satisfaction survey for aids and adaptations work was introduced in April 2008.

The Trust’s in-house adaptations team and specialist Adaptations Officer carries out all adaptations work except for specialist electrical work such as installing stair lifts. Minor repairs are also undertaken by the Trust without the need for referral, ensuring that customers receive their adaptations within the shortest period of time.

Cllr Marie Wright, Halton Borough Council’s Executive Board member for the Community, commented: “This is great news for some of the most vulnerable residents in the borough. It shows true partnership working between Halton Housing Trust and the Council, and the extra funding will help those who are in greatest need to have a better quality of life in their homes."

Case Study

Daniel Hind who is lives in a Trust property and is a wheelchair user is one example of how adaptation work has managed to transform people’s lives across Halton in recent years.

Daniel, who has been left severely disabled by a debilitating illness linked to Multiple Sclerosis and Parkinson’s Disease, was rehoused by the Trust in February last year.

He now lives in a specially adapted house in Runcorn, with his partner Laura Woodcock and two-year-old son Logan Jack. His life was made easier after the Trust moved him to a property which had been installed with a through-floor lift, ramp and walk-in-shower in his new home.

Daniel enthused: “The Trust has really helped by rehousing me and providing me with these special adaptations.

“My mobility has got worse in the past couple of years and I can’t walk anymore so life has been made much easier for me with the installation of a through floor lift, a ramp for my wheelchair and a walk in shower. I found life very difficult and restrictive when I was in my previous property in Runcorn as I couldn’t wash myself properly, and things became progressively worse when I lost my ability to walk.

 “I’m very grateful to Halton Housing Trust for everything they have done because the adaptation work has also had a positive effect on my girlfriend and my son, the light of my life. It means that I can go out more, get to the car easier and do more things with my son.”

Bob Bryant, Chairman of the Let’s Go Stroke Club, said: “I’m absolutely over the moon to learn about this funding. It’s fantastic news for the disabled as adaptations work is very expensive to carry out and makes a tremendous difference to people’s lives.

“I’m also very pleased as I’ve been dealing with Daniel’s case for a long time and in the past he’s been linked to the Let’s Go Stroke Club. He suffers from a muscle wasting disease which has made life very restrictive and he would have found mobility virtually impossible without having adaptations work in place.”