Our partnership with Homes England

We are pleased to be a partner of Homes England to deliver its Older People’s Shared Ownership (OPSO) scheme

OPSO helps address the need to increase the choice, affordability and availability of homes for older people, particularly the 2.6 million older households with housing equity of between £125,000 and £250,000, primarily in the North and Midlands.

Public First, a research company, has looked at the key role that OPSO plays in addressing the affordability challenge and helping older people with low equity to move to a retirement community and enjoy a better later life that they could not have otherwise afforded. It focused on Sydney Grange, our first 100% OPSO scheme, and also looked at how OPSO delivers several public benefits. It found that:

• Economic growth: The construction of Sydney Grange generated £10.7 million of economic value.
• Freeing up larger homes: People moving into a retirement scheme release larger homes onto the market, creating a chain of two or more moves, often providing homes for young people or families. The 51 apartments at Sydney Grange will release 102 homes onto the market.
• High street spending: Most retirement schemes are located in or close to town centres where older people typically wish to live so they have a positive impact on high streets. Sydney Grange will deliver £556,000 a year of investment in the local area in Oldham.
• Health savings: Each older person living in retirement housing saves the NHS and care system £4,350 per year through reduced use of services. Residents at Sydney Grange save £295,000 a year for health and social care services.
• Improved wellbeing: Homes England’s research finds that retirement housing results in improved levels of happiness, wellbeing and life satisfaction for residents, which are worth up to £6,479 per person per year.

OPSO is critically important and has the capacity to become a much bigger part of the housing market for older people

Find out more about how OPSO is helping to make housing more accessible and affordable for older people.