Feeling overwhelmed with all of the advice you are reading and hearing and wondering how to put it into practice ?
The Association went out to some of our members to see what processes they’ve put in place to deal with the Covid-19 outbreak.
We received over 20 responses and have summarised some of the feedback below. At the end of this article, you can also access a pdf of full responses from some of our contributors. We hope you find it useful.
How are you supporting your vulnerable residents at this time?
Our members are making regular calls to residents either by telephone or through their call system. Those residents who prefer not to be called are contacted by text or email. The frequency of calls depends on needs of the resident – most respondents said they were calling more vulnerable residents on a more regular basis. Some of our members are also keeping in touch with friends and next of kin of their residents.
Through calls with residents and next of kin, members are prioritising their most vulnerable residents and providing additional services to them, including shopping and collecting prescriptions.
Some members are managing external services, such as newspapers and milk deliveries, to prevent the need for residents to leave their homes too often and to limit the number of delivery people accessing the site.
Some members are putting together packs of wordsearches, crosswords and quizzes to help those in isolation. Others have launched newsletters and are regularly updating their websites to keep their residents up-to-date on what’s going on.
Some members have reported that residents are also supporting each other, particularly in schemes where there is a mixture of ages where younger residents have offered to help the more vulnerable with tasks such as shopping.
What action have you taken to prevent the spread of Covid-19?
The majority of members who responded have closed their communal lounges/kitchens and are undertaking daily cleaning of other communal areas with a particular focus on door handles and rails. Where contracted cleaning staff are no longer able to attend, other charity staff have taken on this responsibility.
The majority of almshouse staff are now working from home where possible. Phones have been diverted to mobile phones so that residents can still contact staff. Where staff numbers have reduced due to illness, emergency calls are being diverted to Careline (or similar facilities).
Some of our members have chosen to lock down their almshouses and are not allowing visitors in and, in some cases, are asking residents not to go out. If your charity is looking to take a similar approach, we would suggest consulting with your residents first and addressing any concerns they might have. You should also consider whether your lockdown can be enforced bearing in mind the government restriction announced in March and the law. You should also communicate with residents regularly on the status of the lockdown. We have written about this in more detail here.
Are you residents respecting the social distancing measures? If not, how are you dealing with these?
Initially quite a few of our members found that their residents were unwilling to abide by the social distancing rules. Since the Prime Minister’s announcement on 23 March, however, the situation seems to have improved.
Many are experiencing instances where individuals are not following the government guidelines. They are reminding their residents of the importance of following the measures, though it is difficult to enforce the rules when the majority of staff are working from home.
In some extreme instances, some of our members have contacted the police to speak to individuals who are not following the measures.
How are you handling property maintenance and essential safety checks?
None of the members we received responses from are carrying out anything but emergency repairs and have communicated this to their residents. Where emergency repairs are needed, residents have been asked to stay in another room whilst they take place. Contractors are being reminded to follow social distancing rules and wear gloves/facemasks where possible. One of our members is providing their contractors with PPE packages when they’re onsite, including face masks, foot coverings, aprons and gloves.
Routine safety checks are still taking place where
possible and many of our members are following the guidance published by the
Regulator for Social Housing and the National Housing Federation.
www.gov.uk/government/news/rsh-statement-on-coronavirus
www.housing.org.uk/news-and-blogs/news/safety-checks-and-coronavirus/
Please note: These guidance provided by the Regulator for Social Housing and National Housing Federation were up-to-date at the point of publication (6 April 2020). Members should continue to check both websites for regular updates.
How are you maintaining contact with your residents?
Our members are making regular contact with residents by telephone, newsletters, and alerts on their websites. Where wardens are still working, some are also knocking on their residents’ windows to check that they’re ok. One of our members has said that they’re looking into the possibility of using videoconferencing tools such as Zoom and Houseparty, for their more tech-savvy residents.
How are you/or your residents interacting with community groups?
Some of our members’ residents are interacting with community groups and other support services. The most common ones mentioned were the local church, Age UK, Covid Mutal Aid and community hubs being run by the local authority. These groups are being used to help with shopping where needed and for befriending phone calls where offered.
Many of our members are handling shopping and regular contact with their residents themselves or in conjunction with their residents’ next of kin and so have not needed to use these services so far. Some are considering using them as a back-up if an individual resident’s support network is unable to provide help for whatever reason.
How are your residents managing to maintain fitness?
Residents are being encouraged to walk around the almshouse charity grounds where they exist but at different times of the day and keeping to the social distancing measures. Some charities have provided their residents with some simple chair-based exercises. The majority of member charities that responded, however, are not involved in their residents’ fitness routines during the pandemic.
How are your residents getting shopping?
Where residents are able to, they are getting their
own shopping either by going out or having it delivered. Those who are not
leaving their homes are having shopping delivered by friends, family, almshouse
staff or local volunteers. Those who are dropping off shopping are being asked
to either leave it at the resident’s doorstep or at the gates of the almshouses
if they would need to access communal areas to reach the resident’s property.
One almshouse charity has set up a shop, which is being run by residents, so that they don’t need to go out for their shopping. Other charities have organised deliveries of some basic essentials to reduce the need for their residents to go out.
What are you doing to ensure you can maintain your charity and services during an extended period of lockdown?
Many of our members are continuing as usual with members of staff working from home where possible. Some already had or have put contingency plans in place to ensure the continued running of the charity in the case of staff or trustee absence due to sickness or self-isolation.
The main concern expressed by our members was around cash flow and the long term loss of income from investments and vacant properties. They are looking at what effect this is going to have on their services and what action they may need to take to mitigate this (e.g postponing cyclical maintenance work in 2020)
Some of our members are holding regular meetings with staff and trustees by phone or videoconference. This allows them to discuss potential issues and take action where possible.
A Big Thank You to everyone who has participated in this project . If you would like to share your experiences or any tips with our members, please contact Rosie Sweeney at rosiesweeney@almshouses.org.
To read the responses of those members who are happy to share their feedback publicly, please click here
Posted 6 Apr 2020 16:12; last updated 14 April 2020 13:45