Guide · 3 min read
What is supported living?
Supported living is a way for adults with support needs to live in their own home, rather than in a care home, with care and support from a separate, specialist provider.
The home might be a shared house where a few people each have their own bedroom and share a lounge and kitchen, or a self-contained flat. Each person usually has their own tenancy or licence agreement, so it is their home in a legal sense as well as a practical one.
How it differs from residential care
In a residential care home, housing and care come as one package from one organisation. In supported living they are kept apart: one organisation provides the home and another provides the support. That separation is what gives people more choice over their support and more control over their day-to-day life.
The person
Their home
Their own room and shared spaces, their routines and choices.
The provider
Care and support
A registered organisation supports the people living there.
The landlord
The building
Owns the house and looks after the structure. That's our role.
Guide · 2 min read
Who supported living suits
Supported living is used by adults with a wide range of needs, including:
- Learning disabilities and autism. Often in shared houses with staff on site some or all of the time.
- Mental health needs. Including people moving on from hospital or more intensive services.
- Physical disabilities. Where level access, wider doors and adapted bathrooms make a home workable.
- High and medium support needs. Support can range from a few hours a week to round-the-clock staffing.
What matters is the fit between the person, the support and the building. That's why we describe our homes' features exactly, rather than labelling them "suitable for" a group.
Guide · 3 min read
How housing partnerships work
Most supported-living homes involve three parties:
- The commissioner, usually the council or the NHS, assesses needs and pays for support.
- The provider delivers the support and usually leases the house, managing it day to day.
- The landlord owns the house and leases it to the provider, often for several years.
The lease sets out who is responsible for what: typically the landlord keeps the structure, roof and exterior in repair and insures the building, while the provider handles day-to-day maintenance and running the home. Getting this split clear at the start avoids problems later.
A government regulator has noted that long, rigid leases can put pressure on providers. Good partnerships keep talking after the lease is signed, with regular check-ins and a clear route for reporting repairs. That's how we work.
Glossary
Terms you'll come across
- C3(b)
- A planning use class for a house where up to six people live together as a single household and receive care.
- C4
- A planning use class for a small house in multiple occupation: three to six unrelated people sharing basic facilities such as a kitchen or bathroom.
- CQC
- The Care Quality Commission, which regulates care in England. In supported living it registers and inspects the provider of personal care, not the building.
- HMO
- A house in multiple occupation. Larger HMOs, and in some areas smaller ones, need a licence from the council, with conditions on safety and room sizes.
- Exempt accommodation
- A housing benefit term for certain supported housing run by non-profit bodies, where different rent rules can apply. Whether a home qualifies depends on who the landlord is and the support provided.
- Heads of terms
- A short written summary of the main points of a lease, agreed before solicitors draft the full document.
General information only, not legal, planning or benefits advice. Rules change and every home is different, so please take your own advice.
