Elderly residents at independent living home ‘squeezed out’ by skyrocketing fees

Elderly residents at a home for independent living in Leicester are facing skyrocketing increases to their costs, and some of them are having to move. John Woolman House, on Rawson Street in the city centre, is run by Nottingham Community Housing Association (NCHA) and provides 49 homes for those over the age of 55.

But with the impact of the cost of living crisis, the housing association has had to increase their fees to residents, leaving those who do not receive additional support such as housing benefits priced out of living there. Some of the at-risk residents have made John Woolman House their home for more than a decade, and are now questioning whether they should move, or have already made the decision to.

NCHA says that the increase has been introduced within Government guidelines, and has been made due to “eye-watering” rises in things like gas and electricty. They add it “was essential to maintain the level of service residents need and deserve”.

READ MORE: Tenants are now spending an average of more than 28% of their earnings on rent

Lis Sutherland, 77, has lived in her flat for 14 years and is set to leave in the near future due to the increase, which has seen the combined rent and service charge increase by more than £40 a week. Previously residents in the building, regardless of circumstance or situation, would pay £146.19 which would cover both the rent and service charge for the property, including public areas – but it rose to £189.93 back in April after residents were given just a month’s notice for the changes.

Lis said: “I have lived here for 14 years and I’ve never seen an increase like it. I wish that the changes were revealed to us earlier as it could have given us more options to talk it through with the housing association or even try and save up to deal with the increased costs.

“I’m leaving as it’s not worth my while to stay here anymore. My rent compared to my to income is not sustainable and the impact it will have on my life is not worth it. We’re talking about a weekly increase of £43.74 and a monthly increase of around £189.

“I understand that it’s a cost of living crisis and bills have gone up for them, but we’re going through the same thing. We have to deal with increases to food prices and other things not covered by the service charge and rent, such as fuel and car costs.

“How are you supposed to just find an extra £189 a month within a month’s notice? Income for a pensioner is so varied compared, you have some people who can happily pay it and others who will have to cut down on meals.”

Ruth Fraser, 83, who has lived in the building for 10 years, has also criticised the housing association for dropping such a large increase on residents. She said: “The document sent to us almost immediately clarified that those on housing benefits and supported by the local authority aren’t affected, it’s only the people who are self-funded.

“But self-funded residence vary from just a little bit over the limit for housing benefit to massively over the limit. It’s not something blanket changes to rents and service charges for everyone can adapt to.

“The rent itself is limited by the Government, it’s the service charge which is the substantial increase. It’s risen by £34 a week for everyone, including a 329.47 per cent increase on bills – from £6.55 a week to £28.13 a week. Are they honestly saying that we use £121 in utilities a month each?

“We have suggested a wide range of cost-cutting methods to them, but nothing’s changed yet. We suggested solar panels, which would be a short-term cost but would drastically reduce the amount of electric bills they pay in the future and help all residents here.

“We also suggested turning off community lights in hallways overnight, or having them on automatic timers so they turn off. They’re just left on all night despite nobody using them and it’s such a waste.

“It’s just so upsetting, because they only gave us a month’s notice before the changes happened, so we had no way of coming up with a response or opposition to the changes before they happened.

“They have three different sites in Leicester alone, and I just worry about the fear and concern people will have now, having to worry about money. Someone here is having to pay for the extra increases out of her savings as she can’t afford it with her pension. How is that okay?”

Four of the residents at John Woolman House – Lis Sutherland, Ruth Fraser, Maureen Taylor, 74, and Janet Jackson, 86 – are now trying to open a discourse with the housing association and try and get some kind of compromise or extra support.

Ruth said: “We want an open discourse between the housing association and the residents here, we want to be acknowledged and treated as human by the bosses making these decisions.

“We’re not expecting a massive overhaul in the charges, but some kind of adjustment to the weekly charges to alleviate some of the pressure on residents and ensure it’s actually affordable for everyone to pay.

“Otherwise I worry we are going to be squeezed out of the building and have to try and find cheaper places to live – which won’t be easy while we’re paying the additional rent and bills. Thankfully we have some support from our local councillor, Patrick Kitterick, who’s setting up a forum to discuss the changes and see what he can do to help.”

Holly Dagnall, Director of Homes and Wellbeing, at Nottingham Community Housing Association, said: “John Woolman House offers ‘independent living for older people’ in 49 self-contained apartments in Leicester. We have thirteen such services across the East Midlands. They are designed to support older people to live as independently as possible, and each offer their own scheme manager and access to our 24 hour support centre.

“NCHA complies with the requirements of the Government’s Rent Standard which sets national rent levels for housing associations. We incorporate this into our Rents and Service Charge Policy. Rents and charges are reviewed each year and our Customer Committee Panel of volunteers are invited to comment on any price changes.

“The annual rent review is explained to customers when they sign up for a tenancy and is detailed in our tenancy handbooks. Any changes take place in April and we notify customers with at least four weeks’ notice, in line with legal requirements.

“Following government guidelines, in 2023 our supported living accommodation rents increased by 11.1%. This increase was essential for us to maintain the level of service our residents need and deserve.

“We are aware that for some residents there has also been a significant increase in the service charge they pay for communal services. The main bulk of this cost is gas and electricity. We work closely with specialist energy brokers to ensure the best deal for our customers, but the rates have continued to rise to eye-watering levels.

“The wellbeing of our customers will always remain our top priority, and we know that times are tough for many. Mindful of increasing costs we held a drop-in welfare and benefits session for residents in March. We are open to exploring potential savings measures in the communal services residents receive in the future, and will be happy to do so at a tenant meeting.

“We offer a dedicated team of colleagues to assist customers experiencing financial hardship. They offer budgeting advice and ensure customers are receiving all benefits they’re entitled to. We encourage any customer who is struggling to contact us for support.”