Contacting your MPs

Dear Members

The general election for the next Government will soon be over and we want to take advantage of the enthusiasm of new MPs to set certain records straight, to make inroads in the affordable housing shortage and show they are leading change in the affordable housing world.

I would like to take this opportunity to try and correct the planning guidance definition of affordable housing and see almshouses recognised in the NPPF as affordable housing. This change would have a number of specific benefits to the almshouse charities over the coming decades.

It will allow local councils to use Section 106 (or its equivalent) money to help almshouses expand – particularly on small sites.
It would exempt almshouse charities from being charged the S106 levy (unbelievable but it is happening!)
It would allow local almshouses to take advantage of the Rural Exception Scheme
and it would go some way to help enable Homes England to fund almshouses to build new homes without the need to be Registered Providers.

We may have to offer further levels of assurance to the Government but at this stage we want to get almshouses back on the Government agenda – early.

Can you help?

Could you consider engaging your newly elected MP by making contact and letting them know that almshouses are not only part of the affordable housing solution but a very valuable and unique community housing model that would benefit from appropriate support?

I have composed a suggested letter, but please amend or change as you see fit.

Thank you for your help and lets see if we can get this change through in this parliament.

Best regards

Nick Phillips – CEO

posted 4 July 2024

A new roof for the Farmer and Lemmion-Cannon Charity

Case Study: Farmer’s Row Almshouses – Roof Project

Part of the service The Almshouse Association offers it’s member charities is to help support them with grants or loans if they do not have sufficient funds to carry out necessary works to their almshouses.

Farmer and Lemmion-Cannon Charity applied to The Almshouse Association for a loan of £100,000 to support the extensive roof repairs needed on their almshouses. Now that the work is complete, the trustees have kindly put together a case study to demonstrate how the funds have been spent and the difference it’s made to their residents’ lives.

Background

Farmer’s Row is a row of 10 small almshouse cottages (five ground floor and five first floor) that provide single living accommodation to residents. It is named after James Farmer, a local businessman and philanthropist, who originally constructed them as charity houses circa 1850. He left the row of cottages to provide accommodation to local elderly people who are in need of affordable accommodation.

The cottages have grade II listed status meaning that care is needed when undertaking works. This also limits the type of work that is permitted, and leads to high cost maintenance and upgrading. Occupancy levels are high and the cottages are in high demand. The main source of income for the charity is weekly maintenance contribution income from the properties.

Challenges

Due to age, the roof was in need of significant attention.

Various repairs had been made in recent years but it was becoming increasingly expensive to repair.

Water ingress had become commonplace affecting not only the roof structure itself but the upper floors of the cottages, and impacting on the quiet enjoyment of the residents.

A new roof

Having assessed the various options open to them to rectify the problems, it was decided that the installation of a completely new roof was the best and most economical way forward. This would safeguard the future integrity of the building structure, improve the living experience for residents and, over time, be the most cost effective resolution.

Various quotes were received and it was decided to instruct a local roofer, which was also in the spirit of using local tradespeople and therefore benefiting the locality – reflecting the intention of James Farmer to help the local community.

Financing the project

The windows and the roof are expensive projects; the quote for the windows stood at approximately £30,000 – £60,000, depending on the requirements of the planning authority and the roof works were estimated to cost £130,000. While the charity has funds held in reserve, to undertake both of these major projects using reserves would not have been viable. The roof became the urgent project.

The trustees had been actively looking for grants for expensive upgrading work required for all windows at the properties and they were able to secure £10,000 from a community fund at East Midlands Airport, which is nearby, but no other grant applications were successful.

They then applied for a loan from The Almshouse Association and received a loan of £100,000. This allowed the roof works to be undertaken in full in late 2023 and also means that it is likely that the windows can be replaced in stages over the next 2-3 years.

The Charity writes that,

“This support has been nothing short of utterly game changing and will be instrumental in ensuring these expensive, but important projects are completed in good time. Not only will this safeguard the future of the building, it will also enable the trustees to agree a long term financial strategy to ensure this sought after low cost accommodation is preserved for the community for many years to come.”

Work commences

The Charity advises that the work went largely according to plan, which was the result of significant due diligence and survey work undertaken prior to commencement. It included

major scaffolding
removal of the roof
replacing all wood work
installing a new breathable membrane under the tiles
installing new tiles
remediation work to chimneys where necessary
flashing, guttering and ridge tiling
new insulation in the roof space.

Benefits

Apart from the roof, the thermal performance of the building has been enhanced with the insulation and membrane. This will benefit residents in that it will cost less to heat the building.

The residents were very appreciative of the work undertaken and the trustees received many favourable comments. The local Parish Council was made aware and were supportive of the project.

Click here to find out how you can help us support almshouse charities build new and renovate older almshouses, ensuring safe, warm and affordable homes in friendly communities are available for people who need them for many years to come .

posted June 2024

Almshouse resident and veteran attends DD celebrations

William Clemmey, Chief Officer of Municipal Charities in Stratford upon Avon writes:

“We are so proud to have Phil Sweet as one of our residents. He commanded a landing craft on D Day. He recently attended the Royal British Legion Service of Remembrance to mark D-Day 80, at the National Memorial Arboretum on Thursday 6 June 2024 meeting Sophie the Duchess of Edinburgh, as well as being interviewed by Sky News.”

(see link below)

Video link: D-Day 80th anniversary: Veteran recalls how beached ship was ‘used as prisoner of war camp’ | UK News | Sky News

Photos from the day

_{He was accompanied by Heather Sweet (cousin), Becky Heyes (Granddaughter), Bennet Carr Headmaster of King Edward VI grammar school, which Phil attended and where his medals are on display}

posted 26 June 2024

Celebrating 150th anniversary of almshouse charity in Crowborough

The Association’s Head of Member Services, Julian Marczak was delighted to be at the 150th anniversary celebrations for the Mrs de Lannoy and Haven Homes Almshouse Charity in Crowborough.

On the 14 June 2024, residents, trustees and officers, together with many others closely associated with the almshouses, all came together for a service of thanksgiving at All Saints Church, Crowborough.

A poem which had been specially written for the occasion, was read by Mary Corney, one of the present residents of Mrs de Lannoy Cottages. The trustees of the charity have kindly shared it below:

Sanctuary
150 years of Mrs de Lannoy Cottages

Four gables, proud on Beacon Road,
proclaim their birth: 1, 8, 7, 4.
Today, the heart of Crowborough presses round:
house agents, pizzas, chapel, doctors, pub;
hedge filtering the daily traffic’s hum
and evening visits from the kebab van.

It wasn’t always so, when Mrs D,
replete with widow’s unexpected wealth,
endowed this house, this sanctuary,
raised high upon a Wealden ridge.
A refuge, shelter, second chance
for “inmates with a Protestant belief”.

Not all was perfect in that quiet retreat.
The trail to toilets down the garden path
now rectified by all mod cons within
and water paid for, faults repaired
beneath the watchful eye of those
who oversee and delegate such things.

So here they came, expectant eyed,
and found a welcome they did not presume;
in hugs, warm words and friendships dear.
A garden to bring peace, a plot to tend
and, more than this, a hint of springtime
in the autumn of their days.

Still stands that need, and still they come
as widows, spinsters, married pairs
to live content in Beeches’ Haven Homes
or in Swift House, the latest of the line.
A time of rest before the evening dims.
A shaft of sunlight before shadows fall.

Peter Charles Jackson June 2024

You can also watch the service on YouTube here – To Celebrate 150 years of Crowborough Almshouses (youtube.com)

For 150 years, the charity has been helping elderly local people and those from further afield to find independent living in a safe and secure place in one of four almshouses.

The Crowborough Almshouses provide a friendly and caring community where older people are encouraged to live full and active lives within the setting of high quality housing, support, comfort and security.

top photo – screen shots from YouTube video detailed above

posted 24 June 2024

Girton Town Charity welcomes HRH Duke of Gloucester

A glorious day for Girton Town Charity who welcomed HRH The Duke of Gloucester on Thursday 13 June 2024 for a special visit.

Girton Town Charity welcomed our Royal Vice Patron, His Royal Highness The Duke of Gloucester to their new award-winning “Passivhaus” almshouse development in the heart of Girton in Cambridge.

His Royal Highness was warmly received by His Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant of Cambridgeshire Julie Spence, Nick Phillips, CEO of The Almshouse Association, Willie Hartley-Russell, Chairman of The Almshouse Association, and Ann Bonnett, Chair of Girton Town Charity.

The Duke was introduced to trustees and staff at Dovehouse Court, after which he embarked on a tour of the UK’s first fully accredited Passivhaus almshouse development.

During the tour, Ian Bramwell, Director of Mole Architects and the mind behind the development showcased the interior of one of the new almshouses. The Duke also had the pleasure of visiting resident Diana Henderson in her home and sharing some homemade pastries and cakes with residents.

The event was commemorated with the unveiling of a plaque and Ann Bonnett expressed the Charity’s gratitude to The Duke, saying

“it has been a great pleasure to show you around our new almshouses so you could see first-hand these homes for the future.”

Ann then presented His Royal Highness with a signed copy of local photographer Martin Bond’s new book, ‘Cambridge: Town & Gown.’

Before departing, The Duke remarked,

“I am delighted to have been able to come to Dovehouse Court today to see and hear about your ground-breaking development. It is very impressive that your charity, which has a 500-year history, is now looking to the future with these inspiring homes which have preserved the principles of traditional almshouse design with shared gardens and a community courtyard.”

Nick Phillips, CEO of The Almshouse Association, added,

“We are very honoured to receive HRH The Duke of Gloucester at one of our member charities, particularly to show off this fine example of a new Passivhaus-certified almshouse development. The Duke seemed very interested in how the charity blended historic design with cutting-edge environmental engineering around a welcoming community courtyard, synonymous with almshouse architectural design.”

Earlier this year, Dovehouse Court was highly commended in the Best New Building Over £2 Million category at the 2024 Greater Cambridge Design and Construction Awards, hosted by the Cambridge Forum for the Construction Industry (CFCI) at Pembroke College.

Passivhaus is a leading international low-energy design standard, offering a proven and cost-effective method to achieve carbon reduction targets. Its key features include high levels of insulation, energy-efficient windows and doors, strict airtightness, and mechanical ventilation with heat recovery, resulting in low energy costs and improved indoor air quality.

posted 21 June 2024

Level 4 Housing Qualification with the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH)

Clerk’s personal experience of the new Housing Qualification

A clerk of a registered almshouse charity with 16 properties is nearing the completion of her Level 4 Housing Course with the CIH and thought other members may find it useful to hear about her experience of the course so far. Note, the qualification is only applicable to Registered Providers.

She writes:

About the Course

The basic year-long level 4 Housing Course with the CIH comprises 6 modules on various aspects of housing management and is delivered through ‘Moodle’ (an online training package).
Around 8-9 weeks is allowed to complete each module with no breaks in study unless modules are completed before the due dates.
There is limited online contact with the other course attendees via online forum- based activities.
Completion of each module comprises a written assignment of around 2-3000 words plus quick online activities to submit via Moodle.
Provisional pass or fail results (not grades) are released around a month after the closing date of each assignment, with three attempts allowed to complete each stage.
The course guidance suggests that 8 hours a week study is needed to get through each of the modules that comprise the course, but this may not be enough.

Costs

The basic package which currently costs £2410 (costed £2250 in September 2023) includes limited contact with a tutor via Moodle messaging.*
The deluxe package with 6 online study days with a tutor costs £2930. *

*Note, prices vary from approved centre to approved centre

Clerk’s Personal comments

It has been hard to complete the course whilst still working and at times the charity’s work has suffered. My trustees have been extremely supportive through this process increasing my hours to cover the extra work.

Whilst I have cursed a lot at the volume of reports and housing law to read, the course has been interesting and I feel more confident about my responsibilities and can see where the Charity needs to make changes for the future.

Thank you Tina, for sharing your experience.

Note: The Almshouse Association has argued hard for longer periods for clerks to qualify and an exemption for trustees, proposing that our members have 4 years from April 2024 to start the qualification and 4 years to complete the course.

The consultation with Government is still not confirmed. We will update you as soon as we hear.

posted 20 June 2024

Almshouse resident and D Day veteran attends RBL Service of Remembrance

D Day Veteran Phil Sweet is attending the Royal British Legion Service of Remembrance to mark D-Day 80, at the National Memorial Arboretum today, Thursday 6 June 2024

We are proud to announce that Phil Sweet who is a resident of an almshouses in Stratford-upon-Avon is attending the Royal British Legion Service of Remembrance to mark D-Day 80, at the National Memorial Arboretum on Thursday 6 June 2024 .

Phil who is now 99 recalls the following about his war time experience:

“I was sent to a place called Lochailort in the Highlands where I did six weeks of hefty nautical and ability training. Those six weeks were the toughest I have experienced in my life both physically and mentally. At the end of each week you had exams and if you were not good enough you would be dropped. But I lasted and was appointed an officer then sent to Troon for officer training for another six weeks and then appointed to a tank landing craft ready for the D-Day landings.

The war had been going for quite a considerable period of time for my training was in readiness for the D-Day landings the time of which we did not know then.

I was part of the initial wave that landed at the village of La Rivière as part of the Gold Beach landings. I was in a flotilla which were the first to go into the beach with two tanks on top of each other on the landing craft so that they could bombard the beach with shells as they were coming in to land. We didn’t lose anybody that day although the landing craft was damaged by the underwater objects as we were going in.

Then following the landing we were offloading equipment to the beaches and whilst doing so I had to go to the tented hospital at Bayeux with suspected peritonitis which turned out to be appendicitis.

I was sent to Plymouth to HMS Foliot, running all the movement of landing craft. We were tropicalizing (adding refrigeration and air conditioning) landing craft ready for the Far East but of course that collapsed because they dropped the atomic bomb.”

To all the men and women who served in the war and those who sacrificed their own lives for our freedom – we are forever grateful.

posted 6 June 2024

Policy and Governance update: 6.6.24

On 6 June 2024, Association CEO Nick Phillips, met with the Regulator of Social Housing.

The Regulator has agreed to speed up the production of a streamlined deregistration process for small charities
Nick Phillips agreed to sit on the Regulator Finance Committee and will work to ensure small organisations are represented.
Nick raised the issues related to Homes England funding, in particular the length of time it is taking Homes England to sign off the grand debt to allow de-registration. The Regulator agreed to help smooth this process.

posted 6 June 2024

Richmond Charity helps raise the profile of almshouses

Promoting the almshouse brand is so important for the future success and stability of the almshouse movement.

Here at The Almshouse Association, we are working hard to make sure we get the message out about just how good almshouses are and what we need from the Government to make sure our members can continue to provide safe and warm community homes for people in need, but we are one voice. With almost 1600 members, just imagine how load our messages could be!

The Association is always very proud when we see positive media activity from our members – United St Saviours Appleby Blue and the Trinity Homes Almshouse exhibition in Brixton have both been making headline recently – and we were really pleased to receive a copy of an article Samantha Maskell of The Richmond Charities helped put together for publication in Venture, Atkins Ferrie‘s June 24 newsletter.

It begins…

“If you walk down Sheen Road in Richmond upon Thames, you may stop to admire a row of attractive Grade-II listed buildings. What you may not realise is that these buildings are almshouses – built in 1834 for ‘14 poor men and 14 poor women’. Over time, additional almshouses have been built on the site, and altogether they now provide a home for more than 50 people.

The estate is called Hickey’s Almshouses, after the man who bequeathed the estate back in 1728. It’s
owned and managed by The Richmond Charities. We caught up with Samantha Maskell (right), Head
of Finance, Policy and Governance at The Richmond Charities, to find out more… “

To read the article in full, please click here

Recently had something published on your own almshouse charity? Please do share it with us by emailing karenmorris@almshouses.org and we will be very happy to post on our website.

Or you may want to talk to us about your PR story. Please do contact us by emailing gerryharmon@almshouses.org

posted 3 June 2024

NEWWAY Project explores setting up a new almshouse charity

A representative from the NEWWAY Project recently got in touch with Association CEO, Nick Phillips to talk about their project and their hopes to set up a new almshouse charity.

They are seeking land or property, ideally within the London Borough of Newham, to build a community of accommodation for 6-15 single adults who have a history of rough sleeping or in vulnerable housing situations. The offer will be around 12- 24 months, but dependant on levels of needs and move-on options. These beneficiaries will be supported by the community and team from NEWway. They will help them build on networks that include health services, training, employment and education, volunteer opportunities and household management/financial skills. These supports will allow for a move on from their services, that ensures their rough sleeping is non-recurrent.

Angie Allgood, Director at NEWWAY Project tells us her story

“Mine is an unusual story. I am the fourth of six generations to live, work and worship in a small corner of East Ham called Bonny Downs.

I live in the same street that my great-grandparents raised their thirteen children to adulthood. Their cottages were bulldozed as part of the post-war slum clearance.

My Nan and Grandad moved their family one road down, to council-owned flats, and lived out their days thankful to post-war welfare reforms.

My Nan knew poverty.

She shared stories of severe overcrowding, being ‘kicked out’, hiding from the ‘rent man’, fearing homelessness, insecure and irregular employment and the heartbreak of children going to bed hungry.

NEWWAY Vision

We want for everyone to receive a dignified, compassionate and supportive response which enables a successful and sustainable move away from rough sleeping in the London Borough of Newham.

“I had absorbed her stories and entwined them with my own. In 2013, I walked those same streets, haunted that the destitution of her past life which was quickly becoming our present reality. Rough Sleeping, homelessness, food poverty and insecurity was on the rise.

Myself, and other locals sought the support of Newham churches, and the expertise of Housing Justice to respond to an Isaiah vision to shelter the homeless and feed the hungry in our community.

“In 2013, we opened our first winter night-shelter and formed our charity NEWway Project (1165966).

Over the past 10 years, we have continued to respond to the needs of the homeless community around us. We have grown to provide a commissioned Day Centre- (NEWday) and Employment Social Enterprise- (NEWlife). https://newwayproject.org/

We see large numbers of single men, mostly under the age of 35. Many have been granted the sanctuary and refuge of status in the UK but are faced with no prospect of housing.

Homelessness prevention teams are overwhelmed, and our guests are found as non- priority. Social Housing is non-existent to this group. Private rents are high and unattainable.

Many have a desire to work but become trapped in exploited situations and find it hard to sustain work when they have no place to call home. We see people coming out of homelessness becoming institutionalised by the systems that are designed to support, but often trap people in expensive welfare benefit options.

NEWway have been seeking a model of housing that focuses on the strength of community in providing support, and empowers individuals to lead purposeful and fulfilled lives, which include gaining and sustaining employment.

“We believe that people coming through homelessness are resilient and courageous and have much to contribute to our community. We want to ensure that those who wish to remain in our borough, have better options to do so.

We are excited to be exploring almshouses as our answer.

We are forming a new charity, that aligns with the almshouse principles. This will allow us to provide genuinely affordable community-led housing. We want to provide a place of sanctuary and support, where our guests can recover from the traumas of homelessness and rebuild their lives by contributing within a safe and supportive community.

We are seeking land or property, ideally within the London Borough of Newham, to build a community of accommodation for 6-15 single adults who have a history of rough sleeping or in vulnerable housing situations. The offer will be around 12- 24 months, but dependant on levels of needs and move-on options. These beneficiaries will be supported by the community and team from NEWway. We will help them build on networks that include health services, training, employment and education, volunteer opportunities and household management/financial skills. These supports will allow for a move on from our services, that ensures their rough sleeping is non-recurrent.

Can you join us on this journey?”

To get in touch with a representative of the NEWway Project, please click here

posted 3 June 2024