The lack of new 'housing with care' provision will put even greater pressure on housing providers to find ways of making mainstream housing suitable for frail older people, according to CIH Scotland.

Submitting evidence to the Scottish Parliament Finance Committee's Inquiry into the financial implications of the ageing population, CIH warned that some older people who in the past might have moved into specialist housing with support/care would find themselves with no such options in the future.

The organisation said housing-based alternatives to care homes were not being funded and built at the same rate as a few years ago.

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It continued: "The lack of new specialist provision will add to the already significant pressures on existing housing stock. Most obviously, it means that an even greater number of people will need essential adaptations to their home. This needs to be a funding priority across all tenures, and we have advised the Finance Committee that no assumptions should be made about the ability of older home owners to use equity tied up in their home to fund adaptations, as the right products simply don't exist.

"In terms of the mainstream new build programme, we've emphasised to the Committee the importance of the Scottish Government holding onto the 'Housing for Varying Needs' standards which have been a funding condition for affordable housing provision since the 1990s but which were dropped for last year's Innovation and Investment Fund.

"We've also argued that a greater proportion of new build mainstream housing will need to be built to wheelchair standard: general accessibility standards have improved in recent years but provision of wheelchair housing has been falling, and we're particularly anxious that reduced grant rates will further squeeze provision which costs more to build."

(NE/GK)