Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what incentives his Department provides to encourage local authorities to build retirement and adapted housing.

We are committed to increasing the diversity and choice of housing for older people. We know that the right housing can help people to have the lifestyle they want in later life, and help people stay healthier for longer. The National Planning Policy Framework requires local authorities to plan for a mix of housing based on current and future demographic trends, and the needs of different groups in the area, including older people and disabled people. In March 2015 we strengthened our planning guidance further to encourage local authorities to recognise the importance for planning for older people’s housing.

Local authorities are eligible to bid for capital grant funding for specialised housing for older people, including adapted housing through the Government’s Affordable Homes Programme, which includes funding for supported housing and the Care and Support Specialised Housing Fund.

To help older people stay healthier for longer in their existing home the Government provides the Disabled Facilities Grant, which is part of the Better Care Fund. This capital grant for adaptations is paid to local authorities in England to fund the provision of home adaptations (including stair lifts, level access showers and, in some instances, home extensions) to help disabled people to live as comfortably, safely and independently as possible in their own homes for longer. In the Autumn Statement, the Chancellor announced that funding for the Grant will rise to over £500 million by 2020. Annual allocations for the Disabled Facilities Grant for each year until 2020 will be announced in due course.