The following article, by Housing Options lead advisor Maurice Harker, is from Community Connecting Magazine (Issue 6).

Having a Home of Your Own

In 1996 a report Ownership Options was commissioned by two housing associations and published by the National Housing Federation. It provided six detailed case studies, on examples of home ownership for someone with a learning disability. The report raised much interest. It soon became clear that there was a considerable demand for information and advice and the Housing Options service was established.

It created not only interest but contributed toward a revolution in the way of thinking about services for people with learning disabilities. There has been a culture of professionals deciding what is best for you. Housing Options listened to what people said they wanted. The most influential statement of this was in Valuing People

People with learning disabilities can live successfully in different types of housing ..... the full range of tenures, including home ownership.

The other theme was the importance of helping people to plan ahead. The response from Housing Options was to try to

• Think seriously about a wider range of options
• Help people to plan ahead
• Develop practicable solutions

The job now is to make it all happen and there is a big gap between policy hopes and the real experience of most people with learning disabilities.

Housing Options information can be found on www.housingoptions.org.uk.

Maurice Harker
harker@housingoptions.org.uk

Housing Options, Stanelaw House, Sutton Lane, Sutton, Witney, Oxfordshire, OX29 5RY, United Kingdom
Telephone: +44 (0)845 4561497 E-mail: enquiries@housingoptions.org.uk