Short term rental

Cameron

My mother is 81 years old and has recently undergone a below knee amputation and is in a wheelchair.  Her current house in Scotland is unsuitable for wheelchair use and she is unable to stay there.  We live in Leicestershire and have put an offer on a retirement flat nearer to us but the sale will not complete until a month after she has to move out of her current house.   We have been trying unsuccessfully to find somewhere in this area that is wheelchair friendly for her to rent on a short term basis.  If anyone could suggest anywhere that might be possible, I would be really grateful. 

Sam_Alumni

@Debbie_Scope do you have anything that could help this family?

Debbie_Scope

Hi @Cameron,

Have you considered a temporary stay in a residential care home?
  
It sounds as though your Mother may have some care or support needs while she's recovering and adjusting to her disability? Is she still in hospital at the moment or has she been discharged? 

If you rent a property short-term, you then have to organise the medical and care side of things and this can be a bit time-consuming and stressful if you've got to sort out tenancy agreements too. You'll probably find some short-stay city apartments which can be rented out weekly. You then have to see if that accommodation is accessible and has everything needed. I think a lot depends on whether your Mother needs care at the moment and how much care is needed. 

With a temporary care home stay, all of this can be taken care of in one place and it will probably be much easier to organise than trying to find a short-term let in a property which is suitable for her current needs.

You could talk to your local council's Housing Options team or Adult Social Care department to see if they can provide further advice on all of the options that might be available. Does your Mother have a social worker at the moment either in Scotland or Leicestershire? 

Other options could be using an accessible hotel or a bed and breakfast but if your Mother has a lot of care needs it might not be practical in this type of accommodation.

There's lot of good information on the Housing Care website which might be helpful.

Age UK is a really good place to go for information and advice too. It might be worth getting in touch with your local office to see what services they offer for when your Mother moves into her new home.

I know that the prospect of a care home can be very daunting even on a temporary basis, but this is temporary so it might not be too bad an option if there is nothing else available which is suitable.

If you need further information please let me know. I hope this has been helpful.

Best wishes
Debbie

Cameron

Thanks Debbie, we have looked at several of these options but unfortunately finding one place for the two months we need is proving difficult.  I appreciate you taking the time to respond.

Regards,
Cameron

DawnTL

Have you thought about asking the local district council if they have a short term lease for a sheltered accommodation just until her place is sorted. I’m also in Leicestershire and they always have either 1 bedroom or studio flats on the housing list. They may be willing to give you a short term lease.
Good luck with the move.

Cameron

Thanks Dawn, that’s worth checking, I’ll give them a call.

Marjorie

We may be able to help with your dilemma. We cared for our mother at home for 11years in Bulcote which is about 1/2hr away from Leicestershire. We adapted 1/2 of the lower floor of our detached home to accommodate all her needs, her self contained area includes: a large walk-in shower room (which takes a wheel chair), bedroom/seating room with a double sofa bed, wall mounted flat screen TV, ceiling hoist above an electric specialist single bed, modern kitchen area with microwave, toaster, kettle, slow cooker, sink & fridge & seating area. own back door. all doors are wider to accommodate wheel chairs. All floorings are cream tiles. We are great friends with my mothers carers. I'm very sorry to hear that your mother has gone through such a trauma, If we can help please do get in touch. Pamela 

Cameron

Thanks Pamela, we have managed to get my mother into respite for a few weeks and hopefully by then her house will have completed and she will be able to move in but thank you for taking the time to reply.  Cameron

Marjorie

Good luck with it all. Its not an easy time for you all.

Debbie_Scope

Hi @cameron,

I'm really pleased to see that you found some temporary accommodation. I'm really keen to learn what happened and whether any of the advice you received on the community helped and which routes worked and didn't work.

I think it will be really interesting to hear what was involved in the process. It seemed like things were becoming quite stressful, I hope things are much more settled now and your Mother can look forward to moving into her new home soon.

Thanks for the update and best of luck to you all moving forward.

Best wishes
Debbie

Cameron

Hi Debbie,

I have to say say things were getting very stressful by the time I posted on here, I was really beginning to think we weren’t going to find anywhere at all.  I wish I had posted on here sooner as I have been impressed by the advice and replies to my comment and in particular the reply from Pamela as her self contained accommodation sounded perfect for our needs.  I will certainly use the forum again if looking for help or advice, 

We we were very lucky that the care team who were looking after my mother in Scotland found the respite placement at the last minute and while it would have been easier to have her nearer to hand it has given us some time to get the completion of the house sorted and it is a relief to know that she will be safe and looked after for a couple of weeks while she is still so far away.

thank you for all your advice. 

regards,
Cameron

Debbie_Scope

Hi Cameron,

I'm so pleased for you all. It's really good that the local authority were able to help. 

Please come back anytime if you ever need anything else. It was really nice to share your experience, it's so helpful for others and it's lovely how people come together to share ideas. That's what I love about this community

Best wishes
Debbie