Littleborough sheltered housing scheme faces closure

The sheltered housing scheme at Hare Hill Court in Littleborough faces closure following recommendations from the Council's strategic housing service.

The closure of the 28 bed-sit Court has also been recommended by Rochdale Boroughwide Housing.

Existing tenants have been consulted about the proposed closure and many of them may be unhappy that the building could close down after a survey revealed that they were generally satisfied with the scheme and that its location is particularly popular.

Tenants preferred that the current building be refurbished rather than closed down.

The Pennine Township Committee will give their views on the proposed closure before a final recommendation is made to Cabinet on 24 November.

The Council believes that the scheme is no longer fit for purpose and that the accommodation provided is of poor quality and is not big enough. The Council says that the cost of bringing the building up to a 'decent standard' would be too costly.

A Council report on the proposed closure states: "It is a priority for the Council that the standard of older people's accommodation in the Borough is improved, and in particular that substandard bed-sit accommodation is phased out altogether. Hare Hill Court has reached the end of its useful life and requires significant investment, which cannot be justified due to its underlying design problems."

Rochdale Boroughwide Housing has recommended that the current scheme be demolished and funds sought to develop a new scheme.

In its current state Hare Hill Court does not meet the Decent Homes Standard. The Council has to ensure that all their housing stock meets this standard by 2010.

RBH says that refurbishment is not a realistic option because they believe it would cost more than £1.7million to bring the scheme up to standard and residents would still be moved out while the work took place.

Tenants who are moved out of the current scheme would be entitled to a statutory Home Loss payment of £4,500 and disturbance costs of around £500.

The proposed closure and re-housing of existing tenants is expected to take two years to fully complete.