Almshouse research and published material

It is important to The Almshouse Association to raise awareness of almshouses, to highlight the benefits of almshouse living and to demonstrate the vital role they play in the provision of genuinely affordable homes for people in housing need.

Below you will find a library of reports and articles that have been published on almshouses, the almshouse movement and related issues in recent years. To access, please click on the respective links below:

RESEARCH & REPORTS

Housing LIN Case Study (No. 174) – More’s Meadow Almshouses: A community-led development in Cambridgeshire
– Written for the Housing Learning and Improvement Network by Rowan Haysom, Director at Haysom Ward Miller Architects.
click linkCase StudyHousing LINOct 2024
Almshouse Resilient Communities (ARC) for the Future project – In a world facing increasingly severe threats, including climate change and pandemics, we need to build resilient communities.
– by Callahan, E., Murtagh, N., Pannell, J. & Pooley, A. (2024) The Knowledge Hub on Resilience in Almshouse Communities.
click link to accessResearch Project ARC July 2024
Loneliness and isolation in elderly and vulnerable people
– By David Foster, Helena Carthew, Katherine Garratt,
John Woodhouse, Siobhan Wilson
click link
click for pdf download
Debate PackHouse of
Commons Library
Nov 2023
Almshouse Longevity Study: Can living in an almshouse lead to a longer life?
– research undertaken by Bayes Business School, City, University of London
click linkResearch Reportcommissioned by
The Almshouse Association
May 2023
Understanding the impact of almshouse charities in the covid pandemic
– research undertaken by The Smith Institute
report link

event recording link
Research
Report
commissioned by
The Almshouse Association
Oct
2022
Housing our ageing population
– commissioned by the LGA from the Housing Learning and Improvement Network (authors: Ian Copeman and Lois Beech),
click linkReportLGA/HLINSept
2022
Older People’s Care in Social Housing: A Manifesto for Change
– research sponsored by The Guinness Partnership, Housing 21
and Devonshires
click linkResearch
Report
AltairJune 2022
Keeping Communities Together: How smaller social landlords and
community-led housing can provide affordable, secure, local accommodation for communities in need
– Eleanor Benton, Ruby Russell and Anne Power
click linkCase
report
LSE
Housing &
Communities
2022
The Almshouse Association Financial Benefits of Almshouses
Assessment Report
click linkResearchHousing LINNov
2021
What is affordable housing?
– written by Wendy Wilson and Cassie Barton
click linkBriefing
Paper
House of CommonsApril 2021
Almshouses: a model of community housing for an ageing population
– written Jenny Pannell & Alison Pooley
click linkResearch RICSDec
2020
Coming Home – tackling the housing crisis together
– The Commission of the Archbishops of Canterbury and York
click linkReportcommissioned by
The Church
of England
Feb
2021
A 21st Century eco-almshouse: St. John’s Almshouses, Lichfield
– compiled by Lorin Arnold, Associate, KKE Architects
click linkCase StudyHousing LINJan
2019
Almshouses for homeless people: Sir Thomas White Court, Worcester
– Written for the Housing Learning and Improvement Network by
Frazer Bufton, Director at Lett + Sweetland Architects
click linkCase StudyHousing LINAug
2019
Transforming almshouses for the 21st century
– Written for the Housing Learning and Improvement Network by Jenny Pannell, independent consultant
click linkReportHousing LINJun
2013
Almshouses into the next millennium
– Paternalism, partnership, progress?
click linkReportJenny Pannell
Caroline Thomas
1999

NEWS ARTICLES & BLOGS

Almshouses need to be recognised as social housing to be able to reach their full potential
Comment in Inside Housing by Nick Phillips
link to pdfmagazine articleInside HousingNov 2024
‘Being an accountant in the charity sector is more rewarding’
– interview with Samantha Maskell, Head of Finance, Policy and Governance at the Richmond Charities for Civil Society
link to pdfmagazine articleCharity Finance
Civil Society
Oct 2024
Beautiful Almshouses – Cloaked in History
– article on Norfolk almshouses by Rowan Mantell Photos: Sonya Duncan
link to pdf
link to web item
magazine articleNorfolk Magazine
(part of Great
British Life series)
Sept 2024
Waterloo Sunset review – inside an oasis of affordable living
– Documentary review by Cath Clark for The Guardian
link
pdf
vimeo video link
documentary reviewThe Guardian15 July 2024
Britain’s 1,000-year-old retirement homes (that boost your life expectancy)
– Arabella Youens for The Telegraph
link
pdf
news articleThe Telegraph13 July 2024
Appleby Blue Almshouses opening
The affordable housing for over-65s that could lengthen your life
– Hugh Graham, Senior Property Writer for The Times

Is this Bermondsey almshouse the ideal way of living for the over 65s?
– Izabel Ramirez for Southwark News
click for pdf
Click for TAA news item

click link
pdf link
news article




news article
The Times Property News
The Times


Southwark News
26 & 31 May 2024


25 May 2024
How the Church of England can help solve the housing crisis
James Vitali for The Times
pdf click here
web link here
news article (comment)The Times24 April 2024
Behind the doors of an almshouse in Brixton
BBC news item on Jim Grover photography exhibition to celebrate the 200th anniversary of Trinity Home – ‘Behind the Blue Doors’

pdf – click here
web link
here
online news articleBBC.co.uk news in pictures19 April 2024
A model of social responsibility’ – almshouses in the modern age
Gillian Darley, Architect  for Apollo magazine
click
here
online magazine articleApollo – the international art magazine2 Feb 2024
Live better, live longer: the retirement home that’s more like an alpine spa
– Oliver Wainwright for The Guardian
click
here
news articleThe GuardianNov 2023
The John Morden Centre – Named winner of the RIBA Stirling Prize 2023
– multiple articles published by various news outlets inc. FT, Guardian, RIBA, Big Issue, collated into one article
click
here
variousvariousOct
2023
Appleby Blue almshouse and its residents sit firmly in the community – – “Witherford Watson Mann’s Southwark almshouse gives ordinary older people the kind of housing that is normally the preserve of the wealthy”
– Eleanor Young for RIBA Journal
pdf click here

web link here
web articleRIBA JournalOct
2023
Appleby Blue Almshouse: a blueprint for 21st-century housing
– BY Giovanna Dunmall for Wallpaper*

Witherford Watson Mann reinvents the almshouse for modern city life – Architecture Today
pdf link
web link

pdf link
web link
web article

web article
Wallpaper*

Architecture Today
Oct
2023
Why I’m happy being a Brother
– Laurie Graham, novelist, scriptwriter and Charterhouse resident – for The Spectator magazine
pdf link
web link
magazine and web articleThe SpectatorSept 2023
Inside the new breed of almshouse
– Emily Rhodes for The FT
pdf link
web link
news articleFinancial TimesSept
2023
Charles Fifield: Become a SLIMBY – Something Logical In My Back Yard
– Charles Fifield for Conservative Home
click hereweb articleConservative HomeAug 2023
The importance of Almshouses
– Jan Goffey for The Moorlander
click hereweb articleThe MoorlanderAug 2023
‘View from here’ – They may sound like a quaint architectural anachronism but almshouses could be as relevant today as they ever were
– Susy Smith for Country Living
click heremagazine columnCountry LivingJune 2023
Letter from London: Almshouses, Amis and Assange
– Peter Bach for COUNTERPUNCH
pdf
web link
website
blog
COUNTERPUNCHMay 2023
‘Affordable and stress free’: how almshouses are the unsung heroes of UK social housing
– Amelia Hill for the Guardian newspaper, Social Housing

Almshouse residents may live up to two and a half years longer, study finds
– Amelia Hill for the Guardian newspaper, Social Housing

click here


click here
news articleGuardian22 May 2023
What are almshouses?
– Caroline Roberts for ‘Who do you think you are?’ magazine
online – click here
pdf – click here
magazine articleWho do you think you areMar 2023
Why Derby’s almshouses are still important today
– Louise Jones
click heremagazine featureGreat
British Life
Mar
2023
Ewelme, Oxfordshire: The medieval almshouses set up by Chaucer’s grand-daughter and still running today
– Toby Keel
click heremagazine
feature
Country LifeFeb
2023
Local History: ‘BIGG’ ambitions for almshouses
– Gerry Harmon on behalf of The Almshouse Association
click heremagazine featureRound and About
Wokingham
Feb
2023
Heritage: Finding Friendship
– Gary Lawrence for Wiltshire Life
click heremagazine featureWiltshire LifeDec
2022
Heritage: Providing a safe haven over the centuries
– Gary Lawrence for Wiltshire Life
click linkmagazine featureWiltshire LifeNov
2022
Heritage: Centuries of supporting independence
– Gary Lawrence for Wiltshire Life
click linkmagazine
feature
Wiltshire LifeOct
2022
Supporting Farming Communities
– Two leading charities are seeking landowners interested in
the potential of an affordable housing project for farming communities
click linkmagazine
feature
Country Land
and Business Assoc.
June
2022
Secrets of Essex almshouses
– Denise Marshall for Essex Life
online story link
Magazine link
magazine
feature
Great British
Life
29 Jun 2022
Almshouses: What they are, how they were created and why
they’re still relevant in the 21st century

– Clive Aslet for Country Life
online copy
magazine copy
magazine featureCountry Life13 Mar
2022
Understanding almshouses
– featured in LCR magazine
click linknews item NALC2021
Expanding the provision of almshouses to improve
our future communities
– Nick Phillips CEO, The Almshouse Association
click linkblog
NALC
Nov
2021
Almshouses: The historic model, fit for the future
– Nick Phillips CEO, The Almshouse Association
click linkblogNational Housing
Federation
Nov
2021
Open alms: the almshouse charities building new homes
Insight by Caroline Thorpe for Inside Housing
click linkarticleInside Housing
magazine
13 Oct 2021
Don’t forget almshouses
– Comment by Lord Best in Inside Housing
click linkCommentInside Housing
Magazine
13 Oct 2021
Remember a Charity – Pass it on
– The Almshouse Association with Dan Cruickshank
click linkarticleDaily Telegraph10 Oct
2021
HLIN Viewpoint 100 Almshouses for the 21st Century
– transformation in progress
– Written for the Housing Learning and Improvement Network
click linkViewpointHousing LINApr
2021
Answering the 21st century call to alms
– Laura Silverman for The Daily Telegraph
click linkarticleThe Daily
Telegraph
29 Feb
2021
Britain is building almshouses at fastest rate since the Victorian era
– Milly Vincent for Mail online
click linknews itemMail online
Jan
2020
Return of almshouses for the vulnerable could help
solve Britain’s housing crisis
– Patrick Sawyer for The Telegraph
click linknews itemThe TelegraphJan
2020
Almshouses being built at fastest rate in decades
– Becky Johnson for Sky News
click linknews itemSky News3 Jan
2020
The solution to ageing Britain’s housing crisis? Build almshouses
– Harriett Sherwood for The Guardian
click linknews itemThe Guardian27 Oct
2019
Almshouse boom helps poor pensioners
– Tom Ball for The Times
click linknews itemThe Times14 Oct
2019
Ageing well: a collection of innovative thinking
click linkCollectionThe Whiteley
Foundation
for Ageing Well
2017
Almshouses in Kent – ancient and modern
– Sarah Sturt for Great British Life
click linkarticleGreat British LifeSept 2014
Visiting a 900-year-old almshouse
– Insight by Simon Brandon for Inside Housing
click linkarticleInside Housing18 July
2014
Almshouses – a model for the future?
– Anne Diamond’s BBC Blog
click linkBlogBBC ID
webpage
1 Dec
2010
Why almshouses have a place in 21st century Sussex
– Geraldine Constantine
clink linkarticleGreat British
Life
19 April
2010