One-third of councils still ‘unprepared’ to meet rising demand for older people’s housing

Oliver Knight, head of residential development research at Knight Frank, said the results showed the pace of change has “stalled” since the last edition of the survey. 

He said: “The appetite from investors and developers to deliver more age-appropriate housing is clear and growing. A more consistent and supportive policy environment will unlock more supply, more propositions and more choice for seniors.”

The supply of new senior living homes is rising, with more than 9,140 new homes built in 2023, up 19% on the previous year.

However, independent reviews of the sector have suggested that as many as 50,000 new older people’s homes are required per year to keep up with demand. Just 37,000 homes have been built in the past five years.

Nicola Gooch, a partner in the planning team at Irwin Mitchell, said planning remains “one of the biggest challenges” facing the senior living sector and that councils are “failing to make progress just when the need is becoming increasingly acute”.

She added that amid political instability over the past two years, the results are “disappointing, but probably not surprising”.

Dozens of councils have either delayed or withdrawn their local plans in part due to uncertainty over central government housing policy, she added.

Ms Gooch said a “supportive policy environment… might finally be in reach”, pointing to the government’s Older People’s Housing Taskforce, which was set up to tackle the issue last year and is due to report later this year.

Meanwhile, the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act contains provisions which, when brought into effect, will place the secretary of state under a specific legal duty to give detailed guidance on how councils should plan to meet the needs of the elderly population.

Ms Gooch said: “We certainly need both local and national government to take a proactive approach if we are to unlock the potential of senior housing in England. There is still a long way to go before the necessary support is in place to deliver our population’s elderly housing needs in full.”

A Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities spokesperson said: “Providing the homes older people need to live more independently is absolutely vital and that is why we launched an independent taskforce to look at how we can provide greater choices for the elderly.

“Our updated National Planning Policy Framework already sets out how councils can boost the supply of housing to support our ageing population and we fully expect councils to continue playing their part in providing a diverse range of housing, including retirement accommodation and care homes.”

The concern about councils’ preparedness on this issue comes after the Housing and Ageing Alliance last week called for Homes England to set aside 10% of its grant programme for older people’s housing.