Our population is ageing but all too often our housing does not reflect that need.

It leads to situations whereby older people who want to downsize, cannot do so or those with specific needs such as wetrooms and stairlifts struggle to access this type of support.  For this reason I wanted to see more being done to focus on housing for older people.

I am pleased to see that the Government is finally moving forward with this idea and setting up an Older People's Housing Taskforce. 

At the moment a consultation is taking place on what the Taskforce should be considering to further understand the market and people's needs.

It would be useful to have both individuals and stakeholders working with older people to provide some feedback on this.

You can do so using the below website:

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/older-peoples-housing-taskf…

Whether it's simple matters like heating and energy efficiency, smart homes or proximity to town centres, churches and health facilities, to more specific issues around lighting, shared green spaces and allotments, anti social behaviour and having parking for friends and family visits it is important we start making considerations as to how housing can be improved for older people, or perhaps built entirely with older people in mind. 

The task force may also look at tenures, mortgages and leases, something I know many will take an interest in, as well as if houses are made for a certain sector of society, should they be passed down, or be akin to council housing and leased over time.  There are many options to consider but it seems clear that boosting diversity within the housing stock available to middle and lower incomes is key. 

Let's hope this taskforce can get up and running soon and provide clear recommendations for home developers.