CAF Bank has published a great case study on their website on the Poland Trust Almshouse Build which we have shared with you below:

The cause

A philanthropic gift, the commitment of trustees to a decade-long project and CAF Bank’s support. These are the foundations of a new build scheme in Surrey, to make affordable accommodation available for people who otherwise may not have been able to stay in the area.

High property prices mean that the availability of housing is a worry for many local people. The Poland Trust, a locally-based charity and Almshouse Association member, has been looking at ways to meet the need for affordable homes, so that the community can continue to flourish.

The Trust’s main aim is to help people in need, hardship or distress who have a connection to the villages of Brockham, Betchworth, Buckland and Leigh. It was set up with the financial support of Sidney Michael Poland who lived in the area. He died in 1936, leaving funds and property for the benefit of local villagers. Originally, the charity helped older residents to find suitable homes for retirement. In recent years, it began exploring how to help young people stay in the area by providing social housing.

CAF Bank support

After nearly ten years of searching for a suitable site, The Poland Trust is developing Poland Meadow. 12 homes are being constructed on land gifted by a local family. The Weekly Maitenance Charge for these flats and houses will be at approx. 60% of market rate, with priority given to those with a strong connection to the local area.  The development also includes five self-build plots, which the Trust has sold to local residents at 75% of market value. A covenant means that these can only be sold on at 80% of market value and have to be offered to people in the local community.

Getting this project off the ground relied on support from a number of sources, including the Trust’s own resources, a grant from Mole Valley District Council, proceeds from the self-build plots and a bank loan.

CAF Bank was selected to provide long-term finance. Following discussions to understand the needs of the project, we were able to provide a secured loan which was drawn down in summer 2022.

The impact

The development provides four one-bedroom flats, two one-bedroom houses, five two-bedroom houses, and one three bedroom-house. In collaboration with The Almshouse Association, all the homes are designated as almshouses, in line with other properties run by the charity. The first four units are occupied by residents with an average age of around 30.

“I never thought I would be able to live independently in the village and community where I grew up, because of housing costs in the area so this lovely new flat is a life-changing opportunity for me and I am extremely grateful for it,” said one new Poland Meadow resident.

Project takeaways

A challenge might have multiple solutions

The inclusion of self-build units assisted The Poland Trust in making the project financials stack up, as well as providing a different option for those for whom rental properties are not a suitable solution.

Know your local environment

The trustees of the charity are all local and know that the area floods. With this knowledge they invested approximately £300,000 installing a reservoir for surface water, so they can control the release of water into the local catchment area.

Engage with the local community and employ local firms where possible

The architect of the project has lived in a local village all his life, the builders are based nearby and the building standards supervisor lives in the area.

We recognised some time ago the need for social housing for the younger generation, to supplement our existing almshouses which cater for older beneficiaries.

We are immensely grateful to CAF Bank and all the supporters of this development, which will provide high quality homes for current and future residents. The greatest reward has been the reaction of the new residents as they move in.

Andrew Barratt, Trustee

See Also: Almshouses for young people in Surrey |

posted June 2023

The Taunton Heritage Trust is an almshouse charity based in Taunton, Somerset.  We provide 66 almshouse flats in the town for the over 60s in financial need.  All our flats are adapted with the older person in mind and have walk-in showers and a 24-hour care alarm system.  We also provide live-in Warden support. 

[above photo: Grays Almshouse, a Grade I listed building dating back to 1635s | All photo credits: Taunton Heritage Trust]

Each of our sites has the benefit of a community room for the use of residents as well as communal laundries with washers and dryers provided and maintained by the Trust. We ensure our flats and communal gardens are maintained to a very high standard and provide all flooring and white goods in each flat.  We also have guest suites so that our Residents’ friends and relatives are able to visit and stay over at minimal cost.

Each site is a special community in its own right.  We have two very experienced wardens whose role is that of “good neighbour”.  They visit our residents on a daily basis and are able to tailor their visits should a resident need some extra support.  If for example, a resident has recently been unwell, had a fall or come home from a spell in hospital, our wardens are able to keep an extra special eye on that individual to ensure they are fully supported. 

Our wardens organise a range of events and activities for the benefit of our residents and this includes regular coffee mornings, film afternoons, fish & chip suppers, race nights, charity fund raisers etc. 

We never put our residents under any pressure to get involved, and some are very private individuals who like to keep themselves to themselves.  We completely respect that fact but we work hard to ensure that our residents are never socially isolated and always have a friendly face to turn to if they have a problem.

HISTORY OF TAUNTON HERITAGE TRUST

The Taunton Heritage Trust is an amalgamation, achieved over the last century or so, of a remarkable collection of charitable trusts, funds and bequests originally for the benefit of needy people in Taunton but now extended to the inhabitants of the modern borough of Taunton Deane. Its origins were unknown to a Government Charitable Commission as early as 1611, but by then it was endowed with some fifty properties in the town centre and land in two Devon parishes. The involvement of Civic Officers in the distribution of doles suggests a pre-Reformation origin in the brotherhoods established in the town’s principal church, St Mary’s, in the 15th century.

Charitable housing was part of that same attempt to help the poor in the 15th century, culminating two centuries later in several independent almshouse foundations, two of which, by Richard Huish and Robert Gray, were singularly well endowed. All at different times were supported by and later amalgamated with the Civic Foundation, bringing with them educational interests and as well as a long tradition of sheltered housing coupled with financial support.

Surviving records of the charities tell a story of help given to thousands of the most vulnerable in the town and neighbourhood, and of a succession of townsmen and women and others, giving their time as Trustees to ensuring that the generosity of the past continues to be effective in the future.

The Trust has a fascinating document put together by the Arts Society on the Chapel at Grays Almshouses

click here to view

Due to the very special nature of what we offer at the Taunton Heritage Trust, there is no doubt that some of our residents are able to live independently within our schemes for longer than if they were living elsewhere in the town on your average street. 

Some of our residents are well into their nineties, and because of the sheltered nature of what the Trust provides, are able to still live with dignity and a great quality of life, behind their own front door, in the knowledge that help is always on hand. 

As well as the support that our wardens provide, our residents look out for each other and there is a real sense of belonging and caring.

The following are some special case studies regarding residents, that have been prepared by our wardens.  It is so apparent that our wardens develop a very special relationship with their residents:

“This gentleman joined us in December a couple of years ago.  He had lived in his own mobile home on a site for over 25 years, but on return from hospital, he realised that his home was no longer fit to live in, as it had deteriorated so badly.  It was also unsaleable.

The gentleman was invited in for an interview where he came across as being very independent although his mobility was limited. We felt he was in need and that we could offer him a ground floor flat with 24 hr support through the piper line and warden.  He very happily accepted and was very aware that he would have to arrange a package of care when needed.

This gentleman has now lived independently in his own almshouse for 18 months, and due to his terminal illness, regularly visits the local hospice.  We have been able to provide him with the support to enable him to maintain his independence and dignity and to ensure the final months of his life are comfortable.  He enjoys a daily warden visit.”

In his application he was completely honest and open about his medical condition which is serious and will shorten his life expectancy.  He had a short spell in a Nursing home for respite which he did not enjoy, as he felt that he was far too independent and mobile and not ready for this stage.

“Resident M was 61-years-old when she came to the Trust and has been with us for 27 years. She was divorced from her husband before moving to Taunton to be closer to family and friends. In her younger days she worked as a supervisor at Woolworths.

M was given the choice of two vacant flats at the time and she decided to have the smaller one which is our only flat that is still a bedsit with the bedroom and living room together; this was ideal for her as it is in a private location overlooking our lovely gardens.

M is a very quiet, solitary lady and lives a very independent life, but she is one of our characters. She has a very quiet presence yet participates in every event within the community, even if she insists that she ‘can’t be bothered with it’! Our warden usually sets the bait with a homemade cake or something tasty and lo and behold she will always turn up and usually is the first to arrive!  She is encouraged to join in as her life is quite lonely, however, this is the way she likes to live.  She has a poor relationship with her family who have only recently become more supportive since M has been diagnosed with dementia.

At present her mental health is deteriorating but she has surprised us all by accepting help with a carer coming in once a day to prepare lunch and assist with small chores or do shopping. We hope that with the support that we are able to provide, that M will continue to stay with us as long as possible.”

“Resident D has been with us for a year. He is a former homeless man and he is slowly adjusting to a more comfortable life in Trust accommodation. He had been sleeping in an old camper van for over two years and was accessing facilities at a local homeless charity. He was referred to us by a support worker from the homeless charity, initially bringing him along to an Open Morning.  D was very distrustful and both the support worker and members of the Trust staff had to work quite hard to persuade D to take up our offer of a flat. 

D is a single man and gave up his business so that he could care for his elderly parents who have now both died.  He settled in to his flat well, although he still displays traits of having an unconventional lifestyle!  D is a quirky character with a great sense of humour, and he mixes well within our community. He has been offered help with furniture etc, but he prefers to sleep on a camp bed and use only a camping chair.  The Trust has been able to provide him with a stable home in a safe environment and he has built up a good level of Trust with his warden and close neighbours.”

Resident D is a 78-year-old widow and arrived in this country from Australia in 2018 courtesy of the Office for Migration. All three of her children are in Australia and whilst living there with her daughter, she tried to get a permanent resident visa so she could be granted state benefits but was unsuccessful. She was staying in temporary accommodation at the time and was referred to the Trust by a local Housing Officer. Being in a community and having the security of living within the Trust appealed to her.

Having no income and few belongings, the Trust granted her money to purchase essential furniture, and after sourcing items from charity shops, it was not long before she adapted and made her little dwelling look lovely and homely. D began to slowly settle in, but her heart was sad because was also still missing her husband who had died four years previously; and then she was forced to leave her family and the new life that she had made.

I referred D to a befriending charity and for a while she appreciated the weekly phone call but was not up for joining in the monthly tea party that they organise. D is a quiet, gentle soul and is very positive lady who enjoys good humour.  She soon developed a friendship with another lady, also a widow living on that site, a rather larger-than-life character who liked to know everyone and everything! They soon became inseparable and started doing everything together: going to the coffee morning that we started up on that site; trips to the local supermarket most days, Trust Christmas events and summer outings; breaking lockdown rules together and sometimes even having a bit of a moan between themselves! It was a good friendship and D appeared very much happier. Sadly, her friend collapsed one day and was taken into hospital. For many weeks D was without her friend who eventually passed away.

The weeks following, D understandably seemed quite low in spirits, so I took more time to chat with her on my visits. For a while she lost her spark again and initially, she expressed no interest in doing much, but over time and with gentle encouragement, I managed to get her to come to the coffee morning on our main site. This was quite daunting for her on her own, so I walked up with her the first couple of times, having made everyone aware that she was joining us. It was wonderfully heart-warming to see how well she was welcomed into the group She sits with her cuppa having a good old natter and now regularly attends many events that myself and the residents organise.

Before her friend died, D volunteered in a local charity shop, and she told me that after lockdown they never asked her back. I could sense her disappointment and rejection and I recently had a conversation with someone who knew D and worked in the shop. The lady told me that they never asked her back because she kept talking to customers. I remarked that to me this would not matter, and it was a shame as D enjoyed the company, and that surely it should be a positive thing to chat to customers and good for business! Knowing this lady well, I knew that my comment would probably be passed on – and it was! D’s face was beaming recently when she told me that the Manager had apologised for not calling her sooner and that would be very pleased to welcome her back!

One last thing – I am awaiting a message from her daughter in Australia who has recently been unwell in hospital and misses her Mum too.  Hopefully, I will be able to arrange for D and her family to facetime soon, and before Christmas as I know this will be very lonely time for her. “

The Almshouse Association is thankful to Taunton Heritage Trust, to the wardens and the residents for sharing their stories with us. If you would like to find out more about the Trust, please visit their website here.

posted June 2023