Council and democracy

What is extra care sheltered housing?

Extra care sheltered housing is a practical alternative to moving into a care home. The schemes will help people to live independent lives in self-contained sheltered accommodation with extra care and support to meet their individual needs, provided on a flexible basis - available as and when it is needed - 24 hours a day.

These schemes are being set up by Hertfordshire County Council with district council housing authorities and other housing organisations, together with companies that provide home care services. They are being created for older people who will benefit from a supportive environment and for older people with a physical disability - adding to the choice in how they receive their care.

Who can get extra care sheltered housing?

• People in their own homes or rented accommodation who are already receiving home care services
• Any older person judged to have needs that could be met by an extra care scheme and the services it could provide
• Older people already living in sheltered accommodation who are receiving home care services. As someone gets increasingly frail, services and support can be increased to meet their needs
  

This is not a complete list and there will be many other examples of care needs that can be met through an extra care sheltered housing scheme.

There will be situations when extra care sheltered housing is not suitable, usually when a person’s needs cannot be met by the agencies that are providing the care within the extra care scheme, resulting in an unacceptable level of risk.

Over the next few years we will be establishing extra care housing schemes across the county.