Supported housing

Supported living housing can be:

• shared houses, usually with 2 to 4 tenants living together with their own bedrooms and sharing a communal space
• single occupancy units, where people have their own property within a group of other single occupancy properties

In this type of housing the landlord and the support provider are separate.

Essex County Council has an easy read guide for supported living (PDF, 1.13MB).
 

Assessing your care and support needs

You will need a social care assessment to find out your care and support needs.  Contact our Housing Options team if you need help you to decide if supported living is a good housing option for you.

Housing Options also work closely with Essex Social Care to ensure that young people facing homelessness are safely accommodated.
 

Moving into supported housing

If supported housing is right for you, you will be able to visit some homes and meet the tenants to decide if you want to live there.

Our Housing Options team can help with referring you to some of the local supported housing schemes.

A family member, friend or your advocate can help you sign the tenancy agreement and move into supported living accommodation.
 

Paying for supported housing

If you move into a supported living property, you'll have to pay rent which may include:

• service charge to cover the property or scheme manager
• general maintenance of the property

If you're eligible for Housing Benefit or Universal Credit, you might be able to claim this towards the cost of your rent.

If you choose a shared house, you will need to pay an equal share of the electricity, water and gas bills. If you choose a single unit, you will need to pay all the bills.
 

Local supported housing

There are a number of supported housing schemes in Uttlesford.

Bromfield House, Saffron Walden

Bromfield House, Saffron Walden is managed by Genesis Housing Association and provides 18 units supporting people aged 16 to 55 who might otherwise be homeless and have low support needs. Applicants have their own bedroom and tenants share a kitchen, lounge and bathrooms. This scheme is staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Our Housing Options Team can refer you to this scheme.

Station Street, Saffron Walden

Station Street, Saffron Walden is managed by Metropolitan Housing Association. The property has eight bedrooms, providing accommodation and support for people living with mental health problems. The age range is 18 to 60 years. Residents have their own room and share communal areas. This scheme provides a seven hours face-to-face support each week. Staff are available throughout the daytime and there is an on-call arrangement at night.

If you want to live here, your application will need to be supported by the Community Mental Health Team. 

Railway Meadow Young Parents Scheme, Ongar

Railway Meadow Young Parents Scheme, Ongar is a supported housing scheme offering 13 self-contained flats and specialised support for young parents aged 16-24. Parents need to have a baby under the age of 2 years or at least 20 weeks pregnant and be at risk of becoming homeless.

The scheme aims to provide both young mothers and fathers with support, education and training to help them move on to living independently. The support focuses on developing good parenting skills, general life skills and skills to improve their chances of sustaining a tenancy in the future. Residents have their own flat and there is a communal playroom, kitchen and garden.

Our Housing Options Team can refer you to this scheme.

Refuges

Refuges are safe houses for victims of domestic abuse (and their children).

You can stay, free from abuse when you decide to leave the person they are living with or are threatened or intimidated by an ex-partner. Refuges are only a short-term measure to ensure victims are given the support they need to stay safe when they move-on, some stay a few days, others a few months. The address and details of the refuge is kept secret and confidential to ensure its safety.

You can find spaces in a refuge yourself or you can ask the council to find a place for you. Some refuges have self-contained family units but most will provide a room for you to share with your children if you have them. Communal areas will be shared with other residents and will probably include a kitchen, living room and possibly bathroom. Refuge staff will be available to provide support to help with:

• finding a new, safe home
• budgeting and welfare benefits
• accessing local health, community and cultural services
• including nurseries and schools
• gaining legal advice including accompanying to appointments and court
• safety planning
• training, education and employment

Housing Related Support (HRS) Scheme

Suffolk County Council runs a Housing Related Support (HRS) Scheme for single homeless people. It will help if you have a local connection to Suffolk but If you don't then you may not be a priority for help but they do accept self-referrals from out of the area.

You can apply for housing related support on the Suffolk County Council website.

More information

The NHS has information on supported living services.