Disabled housing

TripToo

Hello all!
I shall do my best not to waffle on too much! It will be difficult though! This will be a long post and maybe some irrelevant information. But I will try my best.
I'm a 45yr old man, born with spina bifida, lived a somehwat normal/abled lifestyle with some long absences from work between the ages of 20 and 42. Most of which I was a support worker in mental health for the NHS.
Sadly due to spina bifida related nerve pain and ultimately cancer (all clear now) and consequently a below knee amputation.also chronic pelvic pain syndrome most likely caused by having a very deep and large chunk of my left buttock being removed and damaging nerves and muscles (Dr was worried I may have had cancer in my buttock as well as foot so removed a large area).
The ending result of this was that I had to move out of NHS accommodation and was forced to take medical retirement.
Unable to walk or sit down without severe pain a lot of the time. I do have some good days though. Although that's relative I guess.
I moved back in with my elderly parents. Having me here really stresses them out, and me as a result.

I've been looking for housing solutions.  I own a 1 bed flat which I rent out 200+ miles away from where I live. As there were no properties I could afford anywhere near my family, friends and work at the time.

It's on the 3rd floor so even if the area and distance wasn't a problem it just wouldn't be suitable for me to live in anyway.

One option I though of was some kind of semi supported living project.  But these all seem to have an age restriction of 55, so I'm 10 years off that now.
Another option could be to sell my flat and buy a park home property. Essentially a small bungalow. These are cheaper than conventional flats which I could not afford with the funds from the flat I own.
Another option would be to sell the flat and rent privately until the money runs out and the claim housing benefit. This seems full of problems as you never know when you may be asked to leave the property and moving house every year or so would be incredibly difficult due to my disabilities.
Are there any schemes charities for disabled people renting that give some long term security of a lease?
I'm sure I can't put my name on the council housing list given that I own a property.
I assume that selling my property would then mean I couldn't just put my name on the council list as if have too much savings (approx 100k).

I fully appreciate that there will be people reading this thinking I'm in a good position with such an amount of capital.

But as things stand I have no hope of getting employment.
I also have cognitive difficulties which also makes obtaining and holding down many jobs difficult. 

Owning this 1 bed flat seems in many ways to be more of a hindrance than a help.

I would really appreciate any ideas or advice that may help my situation.

Thank you so much if you have read all of this.

I look forward to reading any responses.

Many thanks 🙏🙏🙏

TripToo

I guess if I can afford it then the park home idea could be possible. I'm pretty sure I would need some support living independently. How difficult is it to get allocated support for this type of situation?

Jimm_Scope

Hi @TripToo, I can see why you're so unsure which direction to go. Each choice has it's own risks/faults/benefits. I appreciate you coming to our community to help you with this and I hope members with good knowledge let their thoughts be shared.

From myself, I'm no housing expert. Far from it, but I will see what information I can get for you about assisted living, carer support and benefits entitlement. At least then hopefully you can make a more informed decision. 

TripToo

Thank you Jimm.
Sorry that post of mine was all over the place! 

That's very kind of you.

As far as I am aware I am receiving all relevant benefits that I am entitled to.

Any info on supported living would be great.

chiarieds

I wonder if these links help @TripToo

https://www.nhs.uk/service-search/other-services/Supported living services/LocationSearch/1835

https://www.ownyourhome.gov.uk/scheme/shared-ownership/

On a personal note, I've happily been a residential Park Home Owner for 7 years!

TripToo

chiarieds
That's very kind of you!
May I ask if you use LPG for heating? If so, do you find it okay?

chiarieds

Yes, I use LPG for heating & for my gas hob, & haven't had any problems. You do need to find a plumber that's also LPG certified for boiler servicing, or if you need any work doing, e.g. I used such a plumber when I wanted a new kitchen fitted, & the boiler moving; they also fitted all new gas piping at the same time.

newborn

Thank you o.p and chariads. This is informative. Park homes seem good but with drawbacks. e.g. if it is remote or even wherever it is, if you are not driving, could it be a problem? Some parkhome sites are well managed and fair, others attract an 'element' which would be more worrying for more vulnerable people.  Also some owners are exploitative  over fees, and notoriously over insisting people buy units from them and sell through them, and replace at intervals unaffordably, or victimise and drive away....As you see, I have looked into pros and cons a lot, and looked at sites a lot.

Some have a great neighbourly feel, and people look out for one another.  But nobody wants to depend on begging neighbours for everything of course, so the idea of having enough income to pay for some regular help would be good.  OP has rental income (rents are shooting up because of increased population and homelessness, so that income is secure and should rise)

It seems to me it makes sense to have assembled homes not parkhomes, because they are more climate resistant and ecofriendly.  It also seems to me that planners and councils are a bit rigidly fixed on their terror of caravans, in case swarms of travellers become anti social. They are not thinking that old people, and disabled people, exist at all. 

Or, that they cannot all go and live in care homes or ghettos. Nor would want to.

As OP says, the equivalent of a bungalow, with a little patch of garden, and long standing neighbours of the quiet type, is ideal. (Though I don't mind if there is a majority of one group, just dislike segregation where everyone is old, or everyone is anything. Habinteg adapted housing is firmly not allowed to be anywhere but in the middle of mixed communities, which I agree with) 

OP would be a brilliant neighbour, so would Charieds.  It just crossed my mind there really should be a charity involvement.  If someone like... say, Scope, plus one of the other disability charities, maybe plus one of the age charities, could form a combined housing sub group, they could appeal to councils to release land and consent, and even arrange for  some eco-home assemblers to give good prices.  I .think they assemble in just a couple of days, if they have the site pre planned for services. If a site was big enough, it could be fenced in with security attending, to keep residents safe, and to ensure that if any resident became unwell and took to drink or drugs, or started to keep a dog, or wander round threatening fellow residents, he could be shown the terms of contract and asked to leave, with his investment returned for the resale value. 

(I say no dogs, other than guide dogs, because one man's pet is another man's broken bones, if accidentally knocked over, and one man's overlooked pet-residue is a wheelchair user's smelly home, and certainly one barking dog can keep a hundred people awake)

 I think there are some sortof schemes like that but for recovering addicts, or maybe it is only for rental.  Ownership seems better than rental,because if everyone is invested in keeping up the monetary value of the neighbourhood, they will voluntarily agree about standardsand tidiness and noise, so as well as it being in the rules, they will actively help ensure it.