At LACE Housing we’re proud to be able to offer Extra Care Housing to residents living within Greater Lincolnshire. Our aim is to help members of our community to maintain their independence while accessing the support and care they need.
Our three Extra Care Schemes have both housing management and support teams on hand to respond to emergencies, encourage social activities and monitor any repairs that need making to residents’ accommodation. All our schemes have a care provider on site, commissioned by Lincolnshire County Council, delivering planned care to our residents.
Emma Ward, our Specialist Housing Manager, has worked at LACE Housing for over ten years, and has answered some of our most frequently asked questions about Extra Care Housing.
My care needs have changed but I’m unable to access care within my local community – what should I do?
You may have recently suffered an illness or injury and realise that your care needs have subsequently changed and that you need more support. Our extra care housing schemes are specifically designed to meet the needs of our residents and can adapt if their needs change over time.
How are the Extra Care schemes different to other LACE Housing schemes?
Within our Extra Care schemes, we have Housing management and support staff on site, a hospitality team and an on-site care provider who is commissioned to provide planned and emergency care by Lincolnshire County Council.
All apartments within the schemes have telecare systems in place, which enable staff to talk directly to residents in their flats and can be used by residents to call for emergency help if needed. The telecare system also allows us to make a daily call to each resident to check on their welfare.
Our restaurants are open 365 days a year to provide both dining in and takeaway meals, and in selected schemes we have an on-site hairdresser.
Each scheme is designed to offer communal spaces, including internal and external areas, to encourage social activities. Mobility scooter stores are provided for residents to charge and store their personal scooter at a weekly charge.
Who is on hand to help at the extra care schemes?
We have two Scheme Managers, Agne manages Olsen Court in Lincoln and Tracey manages both Brick Kiln Place in Grantham and Worth Court in Bourne.
Our support co-ordinators, work alongside our Scheme Managers, providing Housing Management and tenancy support. An important element of their role is to manage the day-to-day support within the schemes and ensure all the wellbeing plans and person-centred fire risk assessments are up to date to enable us to support residents appropriately.
Can I continue living with my partner at one of your schemes?
Yes, our Extra Care schemes are the perfect solution for couples who want to stay living together when one or both individuals need extra assistance.
Can I rent an apartment, or do I have to buy?
The apartments at our Olsen Court scheme, located in Lincoln and our Worth Court scheme in Bourne are all rented apartments.
Our Brick Kiln Place scheme in Grantham offers 40 rented apartments and 8 leasehold apartments.
How do the 24-hour alarm systems work?
The alarm systems are connected to two-way intercom boxes in every flat. All residents are provided with a pendant that can be worn like a necklace or on the wrist like a watch. The pendant is waterproof and can therefore be worn when in the shower.
Should a resident have an emergency, such as a fall or accident, they can press the pendant and it will call through to a handheld unit that our staff members carry with them. The member of staff is then able to talk directly to the resident to find out what the emergency is and identify what action is required.
If our staff members are off site, the call goes through to a monitoring centre, which is managed by Lincolnshire Housing Partnership in Boston. They will then be notified of the resident’s name and basic details and will be able to talk to them directly about the emergency.
Does LACE Housing work with the local council?
We work very closely with Lincolnshire County Council Adult Social Care regarding the allocation of residents to each of our extra care schemes. We also liaise with social workers on most of our new applicants, reviewing each applicant’s care needs.
What are the social benefits of LACE Housing’s extra care schemes?
We support our residents in hosting a variety of social activities, which range from coffee mornings and Chinese takeaway nights to games afternoons, singing sessions and Bingo. Many of these events are supported by our volunteers. We hope to be able to resume our activities within the schemes soon, depending on COVID-19 guidance.
Can I live at an Extra care scheme if I have dementia?
Yes, we will consider applications from people living with Dementia. We review the resources within the scheme at the time of the allocation to ensure we can meet an individual’s needs.
In line with our eligibility policy, we work towards balancing the needs of residents against the availability in each scheme when allocating apartments. Should someone who has a dementia diagnosis be on our waiting list, the Scheme Manager will work closely with them, their community mental health worker, adult social care worker and any other supporting network to ensure we can meet their needs.
Am I eligible for Extra Care housing?
All residents are assessed in line with our Eligibility policy before being allocated to a scheme.
The allocation of our Extra Care housing is primarily driven by the care and support needs of the individual applicants. However, consideration is also given to their housing and social needs.
Please check our allocation fact sheet for more information on the eligibility criteria, application process and how we allocate our housing.
If you’re interested in finding out more about our Extra Care Housing, please visit our contact page for the contact details of each of our schemes. We’re more than happy to discuss what we could offer you and the next steps for getting the care you need.
