Current issues

7th October 2020 / Almshouse Stories, Current Issues

Local Rector talks about almshouses and the test of time on the C of E website

Mark Bennet, Team Rector at Thatcham in Berkshire talks about his preconceptions of almshouses before he found himself as one of the trustees of Loundye's and John Hunt's Almshouses. He begins: Before I became a trustee of the Thatcham Parochial...
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7th September 2020 / Almshouse Stories, Current Issues

Association article makes it into LGA Magazine

The Local Government Association’s first magazine has published an article written by the Almshouse Association promoting almshouses and their benefits to local authorities. The article forms the basis of the Association’s engagement strategy with a number of different stakeholders across...
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22nd July 2020 / Current Issues

Virtual Recruitment

Virtual Recruiting can work well! Charisma recruitment is registered on the Almshouse Association's Panel of Consultants and they have offered some great advice to any members that may be finding 'in person recruitment' a challenge at the moment: Right now,...
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20th July 2020 / Current Issues

Historic England: Improving energy efficiency in listed buildings

Historic England has produced a new report, Energy Efficiency and Historic Buildings: How to Improve Energy Efficiency, which looks at how you can improve the energy efficiency of historic buildings. The report highlights the necessity of striking the correct balance...
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13th July 2020 / Current Issues, Latest News

Housing Ombudsman: New Complaints Handling Code

The Almshouse Association would like to make members aware of the new Complaints Handling Code which has been published by the Housing Ombudsman Service. The Code is meant to ā€˜a framework for high-quality complaint handling and greater consistency across landlords’...
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7th July 2020 / Current Issues, Latest News

Legionella tests reminder

As the lockdown continues to ease around the nation, it is worth remembering to catch up with vital checks which may not have been undertaken as buildings were left understaffed or empty. A particularly important check at this time is...
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6th July 2020 / Current Issues, Latest News

Electrical Safety Standards Regs 2020

On July 1st The Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020 came into effect for new ā€˜specified tenancies’. Existing tenancies will not be affected until April 1st 2021. Please look at our guidance below on what...
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6th July 2020 / Almshouse Stories, Current Issues

Rural Housing Week

This Rural Housing Week is likely to be dominated by the long term impact of the Coronavirus pandemic. Action with Communities in Rural England (ACRE) recently discussed how a fall in property prices is likely to lead to a reduction...
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1st July 2020 / Current Issues

Helping those in isolation

Loneliness Minister, Baroness Barran has urged people to consider writing letters and cards to those who still have to isolate in an effort to combat loneliness. The Almshouse Association fully supports this idea and hopes that our member charities can...
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12th May 2021 / Current Issues

Almshouse Association Board Meetings – Record of Key Decisions

Record of the Key Decisions made by the Almshouse Association Board of Trustees at Board Meetings (from June 18 onwards). The most recent decisions are listed first: 3 March 2021, via Zoom The Board agreed to increase the number of Regional...
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24th May 2020 / Current Issues

Conflict of Interest: guarding against a potential for conflict of interest

This is an area that we come across a great deal more than one may expect. Conflict of interest really only comes under scrutiny when something goes wrong, however when business planning, it is good practice for trustees to assume...
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22nd April 2020 / Current Issues

New almshouse design featured in the Financial Times

Inspiring article in the Financial Times by Emily Rhodes on 13 March 2020 features the innovative plans for a new almshouse build commissioned by United St Saviour's Charity in London. As the building of the 57 one and two bedroom...
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