Almshouses: a model of community housing for an ageing population.
A recent report recognises the great value almshouses have played in the provision of homes for people in housing need over the centuries.
Authored by Jenny Pannell and Dr Alison Pooley of Anglia Ruskin University, the report explores the characteristics of these small scale micro communities that appear in almost every market town and city in England. They identify the value of the architecture, the unique nature of almshouses as charitable enterprises, the drive of philanthropy in establishing them and the need and opportunity for more, as well as highlighting some of the barriers that are preventing almshouse development for the future – planning, awareness of their existence and lack of understanding of their great value to society.
This report goes a long way to demystify and raise awareness of the beloved, valued asset of our community and whilst the report is steered towards older people, some of the findings can apply to almshouses for younger people, families and mixed age groupings. It reinforces the good practice and experience which needs to be more widely disseminated by The Almshouse Association, promoting it as an exemplar of community-led housing, providing affordable dwellings and encouraging an intergenerational approach for the benefit of all alleviating isolation yet allowing for independence too.
The Almshouse Association endorses the comments that we recommendation ‘to reinterpret the past and reimagine for the future’. We are working with our members to see more almshouses built, historic almshouses refurbished and re-modelled and new charities established. As the report notes, almshouses will always only be part of the affordable housing solution, but to those residents who find themselves a home in an almshouse – they are often the most important part of their life.
Almshouses: a model of community housing for an ageing population – by Jenny Powell and Dr Alison Pooley of Anglia Ruskin University
Almshouses have existed in England for over a thousand years, and new almshouses are still being built. Almshouse charities provide social housing for over 36,000 people in around 30,000 dwellings. Most almshouse residents are older people (aged 50/60+ years), yet built environment and housing professionals, politicians and others concerned with the provision of housing for older people are more familiar with other social housing providers than with almshouse charities.
Research on almshouses tends to focus on their architectural and social history, detailing historic buildings, the past role of philanthropy, and the lives of residents, rather than their current or future role in housing provision. Recent reports addressing housing issues, and more specifically addressing rented housing for older people, have tended to concentrate on housing with care as solutions for future provision.
This research starts to fill the gap by taking a future-focused approach, looking at recent almshouse developments to inform housing provision in the 21st century. It explores their distinct and valuable contribution to housing older people to inform built environment and housing professionals, including architects and surveyors, funders, local authority housing and planning officers, prospective partner organisations, Homes England and the UK government.
The full report can be found here
About the RICS Research Trust
This research was funded by the RICS Research Trust. The Trust supports and promotes high-quality independent contributions to knowledge in the disciplines of land, real estate and construction.
Posted 5 January 2021