About

In the early 1980s, a handful of concerned people turned their attention to the problems faced by older homeowners, who lived in very poor housing and yet lacked the resources or skills needed to address the problem.

There was also an apparent trend that some homeowners were being forced to enter residential or shel­tered accommodation, only because their house was in such a poor state of repair.

And so the early Care and Repair schemes began with the aim of improving the qual­ity of older people's lives through improving their housing conditions. The demand for this type of assistance was quickly established and there are now over 300 services in the UK, with similar organisations in Northern Ireland, Canada and Australia.

Care & Repair services offer personal, financial and technical support to people facing the difficult task of repairing, improving or adapting a home which is no longer suitable to the person's needs.

The provision of advice and information is a central part of Care and Repair's role, as well as providing practical assistance with grant applications and co-ordinating repairs. Care & Repair is a home-based and personalised service, which puts the client in control of decisions.

Staff visit people at home and assist them through the entire process of deciding what work is to be done, arranging the finance and organising the building work.

Each case involves a different approach and often staff must cross disciplinary and departmental boundaries, working closely with health, housing and social work staff, to reach a solution for the client.

The building work is funded in a vari­ety of ways, including local authority grants, benefits, equity release, home loans and charitable funds.

The core target group for Care and Repair services is older owner occupiers aged 60 and over.  However, some Care and Repair services extend this client group to include owners of any age group with physical or mental disabilities, or with special housing needs; private rented sector tenants (who are older/disabled); and crofting tenants (particularly in the Highlands and Islands).

Some local offices operate a waiting list and there may be variations in what qualifies for grant-aid in each local authority area.