What is Extra Care housing?

Extra Care (EC) housing supports adults to maintain and develop their independence within the community. It can prevent an unnecessary move to a care home, and enhance the quality of life for residents.

EC housing combines the advantages of high quality, self-contained accommodation occupied with full tenancy rights by the tenant, with a flexibility of care available 24 hours a day which can be increased or decreased in response to individual needs. The service enables the tenants to retain control over their own lives while receiving the support they need in a safe environment.

Care needs that may be supported in EC housing

EC provides high quality care and support service for Camden residents who have been assessed as having needs which are eligible for social care funding, including those arising from varying degrees of physical frailty, learning disability, mental ill health and cognitive impairment, including dementia and a combination of these.

The average age of tenants currently in extra care is 65+ although some tenants are younger. Work is underway to introduce more all-age services in Camden.

How tenants may be supported

The EC setting will enable the provider to support people to maintain and develop their independent living skills, maintain their tenancies, link them into appropriate services and provide care and support.

The EC provider will ensure that care and support is provided in a strength based way that upholds tenants' rights, dignity and privacy and in an enabling way which ensures the attainment of an optimum level of independence.

Extra Care housing in the borough

There is a mixed market for Extra Care in Camden with:

• 3 schemes currently run by external providers (Esther Randall Court, Roseberry Mansions and Gospel Oak Court)
• 2 in-house schemes (Charlie Ratchford Court and Mora Burnet House).

Below is a table showing capacity of Extra Housing in four schemes.

Lunchtime meal options in Roseberry Mansions and Esther Randall Court

In Roseberry Mansions and Esther Randall Court, residents have the flexibility to opt in or out of the lunchtime meal at any point or to purchase a one-off meal at short notice.

Residents are encouraged to join mealtimes with their own lunches to prevent social isolation and maintain the community feeling at this key time of the day.

Residents are given financial advice from the General Manager at both schemes regarding the flexible choice of opting in and out of the scheme’s lunchtime meal. The support given to residents is to ensure that residents understand the impact of their service charge vs. the cost of sourcing their meals, additional care calls, etc.