From August 20, the way that deductions are made from Universal Credit to cover the cost of the Weekly Maintenance Charge will be changing.

Under the current rules claimants of Universal Credit are, in certain circumstances, allowed to agree to have their housing costs paid directly to their landlords under the Alternative Payment Arrangement, however, the schedule for these payments (four-weekly cycle) did not match the schedule of the remaining Universal Credit payment (monthly cycle). This system has been found to create difficulties for both claimants and landlords.

The new system will bring both of this payments in line with each other so that claimants and landlord receive their payments on the same date.

• This change will only affect landlords who make use of the online Landlord Portal to manage payments.
• Payment information can be accessed via the portal to see information which will enable them to more effectively support beneficiaries who are experiencing difficult circumstances.
• Those who will be affected by the change should be contacted prior to the system going live and should be provided with detailed guidance on the changes.

More information on these payments can be found here.

If any of the guidance is not clear or you would like further support, please do not hesitate to contact The Almshouse Association and we will endeavour to help.

Posted 27 July 2020

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Update on free and concessionary television licences

On 1 August 2020 the BBC will be introducing changes to its TV licensing fees for the over-75s, which may have an impact on your residents. We have received a number of enquiries from our members on this issue and have developed a set of frequently asked questions to help you.

What are the changes coming into force on 1 August 2020?

From 1 August 2020 those aged 75 or over will no longer be eligible for a free TV licence unless they are on pension credit. This change was due to come into force on 1 June 2020 but, due to the Covid-19, was delayed by two months.

TV Licensing will be writing to anyone over the age of 75 from August to advise them of what they need to do to continue watching live TV or using services such as BBC iPlayer. 

What if the resident’s free TV licence has already expired or is due to expire on 31^st July?

TV Licensing has issued the following guidance note:

www.tvlicensing.co.uk/generalnotice

They have indicated that there is no need to worry about the expired license at this stage and your residents will remain covered by their TV license until they are contacted with guidance on what to do next.

Do the changes apply to ARC licences?

No. If your charity has an ARC licence and your residents are aged 75 or over, their TV licence will remain free of charge, regardless of whether they’re on pension credit or not.

NOTE: For anyone who is aged between 60 and 75 and is retired, the cost of an ARC licence remains at £7.50 per year.

This has been confirmed in the TV Licensing Full General Notice available here

What is an ARC license and how can we apply?

The ARC licence is a type of concessionary TV licence available to people living in care homes and some other forms of sheltered housing. Both the resident and accommodation needs to be eligible for this type of licence.

Almshouses are eligible for an ARC licence if the building itself, land it was built on or charity was established before 1 November 1949. Sheltered or supported accommodation may also be eligible if it:

• Is housed in a building that has been erected or converted for the purposes of occupation by residents that are retired and over 60, or disabled
• Forms part of a group of at least four dwellings within a common and exclusive boundary (up to 25% of units in a scheme can be properties purchased under the ‘Right to Buy’ legislation)
• Provides or is managed by a not for profit organisation; including local authority or a housing associations
• Has a person whose function is to care for the needs of the residents (e.g. a warden) and who either lives on site or works there for at least 30 hours a week, excluding on-call hours.

Your residents will also need to qualify for the licence. They must be aged 60 or over and retired or not working more than 15 hours a week, or disabled (e.g. have substantially impaired sight, hearing or speech, a mental disorder or be substantially physically disabled by illness, any impairment present from birth or otherwise).

To apply for an ARC licence, please visit:

www.tvlicensing.co.uk/check-if-you-need-one/business-and-organisations/residential-care-homes-aud14.

How do I add a resident to our ARC licence?

You will need to write to TV licensing to let them know when you want to add someone to your ARC licence. If the resident has already paid for a full TV license, they can apply for a refund once they’ve been added to the ARC license.

If you have any questions or concerns about TV licences, please contact us at admin@almshouses.org or on 01344 452099.

Posted 27 July 2020

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A big thank you to our members for responding to our 2020 Members Survey. 557 members completed the questionnaire, which is an excellent return and 137 more than our 2018 survey.

Your contributions help us enormously  – to  plan and tailor our services to suit your needs today and over the next 5 years and also to help us to gauge where members may be feeling frustrated and services need to be enhanced or introduced.

Many of you also took the opportunity to compliment the team on the service we provide and I thank you – like any organisation, it is always rewarding to receive good feedback, but it is also important that we make sure we address any concerns you may have and I will ensure these areas are reviewed and raised at future Board meetings and acted on.

I wonder though about those members that, through time commitments or other reasons, were not able to respond to the survey. I think we need to do more to reconnect to those members and canvas their views or at least remind them that we are here for them. Maybe they think we are doing just fine but I do not want to assume, so I will continue to seek more and different ways to communicate with all our membership.

Best regards

Nick Phillips | CEO Almshouse Association

Please click on the below to access the Almshouse Association 2020 Members Survey Report.

Posted 23 July 2020

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Webinar: Incorporation for Almshouses – Why and How? – An Almshouse Toolkit

Date : 28.07.2020
Time: 2-3 pm
Fee: Free of Charge

Stone King LLP and The Trust Partnership invite Almshouse Association members to their third webinar providing almshouse charities with some legal guidance and practical tips as we reflect on the effects of the pandemic.

Following Part One: Surviving lockdown – an Almshouse Toolkit and Part Two: Post-Lockdown Risk Assessments Stoneking present, by popular request, Part Three: Incorporation for Almshouses – Why and How?

In the third part,  Tim Rutherford (Head of the Charity and Social Enterprise Group at Stone King) and Elizabeth Fathi (Director of Almshouses at The Trust Partnership) combine their extensive knowledge and experience of almshouses to present Part Three: Incorporation for Almshouses – Why and How?

The webinar will cover:

• Why incorporate and what are the alternatives?
• Which Structure to use
• The Process
• What to look out for
• Timing

This webinar will follow a question and answer format with examples  to enable a full exploration of legal and practical matters.

If you have any questions you wish to submit in advance, please include them when registering or alternatively please email events@stoneking.co.uk.  There will also be opportunity to submit questions during the webinar.

To book your place at the webinar, please click here. 

Posted 21st July 2020

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Following the success of our Essential Boardfinder webinar in June, we are now offering an in-depth look at the trustee recruitment process in a five-part course.

When: 28 July – 25 August 2020
Cost: £50 (with a £25 refund to those who complete all five webinars)

Over five weeks, participants will discover:

• how to identify the skills they need on their trustee board
• how to develop a compelling trustee advert
• how to interview candidates and tips on the induction process for new trustees.

Each masterclass will be 60 minutes long and held on Zoom.  Those booking onto the course will be expected to take part in each of the five webinars. Places are limited to 20 people so early booking is recommended.

To reserve your space, please complete the booking form and return to rosiesweeney@almshouses.org.

Posted 9th July 2020

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Join us for this free 60 minute webinar on how to keep your charity’s data safe.

When: 23 July 2020, 15:00-16:00
Cost: Free

Hosted by KCS Ltd, The Almshouse Association’s IT provider, this webinar will:

• look at the techniques used by criminals to access your data
• explain the damage this can cause
• give you tips on how to protect your organisation and yourself.

The webinar will be held on Skype and you will need to have Skype downloaded to take part.

Posted 9th July 2020

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Supported Housing has recently written an article on how and why it may be beneficial for members to claim enhanced Housing Benefit for Intensive Housing Management (also known as enhanced housing management and/or additional housing management). 

The guidance refers to traditional rent/service charges, but the rules are still applicable to almshouses.

What is Enhanced Housing Benefit and Intensive Housing Management?

Intensive Housing Management tasks are normally associated with the work of a Support Worker or Scheme Manger, but there is no definitive list. Functions could include:

“Housing management functions such as lettings, assistance with claiming Housing Benefit to ensure that rent and service charges are paid, controlling access and facilitating and monitoring site visits from contractors and other visitors/professionals, arranging aids and adaptations, health and safety and risk assessments of property, management, administration, delivery and facilitation of housing services provided, the additional maintenance and services costs.”

As long as these tasks are not funded by any other revenue stream they can be funded by Housing Benefit.  Furthermore, if you are a registered provider of social housing and you charge Intensive Housing Management as a service charge, the local authority can reclaim the full cost back from the government. In this scenario, you are not only helping your own charity financially, but you would also be contributing to your local area.

The key points of the article are:

• Enhanced Housing Benefit is payable to providers of supported and sheltered housing if they comply with Exempt Accommodation rules.
• You can get the full cost recovery on your housing costs
• Choosing this method could free up funds to invest in your almshouses and staff

The Almshouse Association offers a template letter and a non-exhaustive list of services to members wishing to apply for Exempt Accommodation Status.  This can be found at https://www.almshouses.org/model-policies-and-templates/ Alternatively, you may choose to use the service offered by Supported Housing, however if you are eligible for Enhanced Housing Benefit, you will incur a charge for the assistance.  

14 July 2020

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The Almshouse Association would like to express its thanks to Stephen Morgan MP for raising the issue of Covid-19 testing in almshouses in Parliament last week.

Mr Morgan asked:

To the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of (a) recent trends in the level of Covid-19 tests being undertaken in almshouse settings and (b) the effectiveness of such testing on improving the well-being of vulnerable people resident in those settings.”

Department of Health and Social Care Minister Nadine Dorries MP responded:

The Department recognise the importance of testing and the role a clear result plays in giving individuals assurance and the ability to make informed decisions. The Department is working with the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government to ensure eligible individuals from vulnerable groups in a range of settings are able to access testing.

Thanks to the continuing increase in testing capacity, all symptomatic individuals in England and Wales and all symptomatic individuals aged five and over across the United Kingdom are eligible for a test for COVID-19.

The Department publishes daily figures including the number of COVID-19 tests undertaken but with the exception of whole care home testing, does not record the residence type of those tested.”

The Almshouse Association thanks Mr Morgan for raising the question. However, we do not feel that the question has been adequately answered and as such almshouse managers and volunteer trustees are still concerned about their vulnerable residents. We have recently written a similar question to the government and look forward to a more substantial response which can provide our members with much needed reassurance.

Posted 9 July 2020

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