Adlington Retirement Living’s Sales and Marketing Director met with MPs in Westminster this week to raise the profile of the Integrated Retirement Community (IRC) sector.
The visit was part of an initiative organised by the Associated Retirement Community Operators (ARCO). The theme of the event, ‘an IRC in every town’, focused on offering greater choice for consumers in the future, and was designed to educate MPs and Peers on the many benefits of retirement living communities, the breadth of the sector, and its impact.
Alexandra Johnson, Sales and Marketing Director for Adlington Retirement Living, said: “The event at the House of Commons was a great opportunity to meet directly with MPs from different constituencies to talk about our product and the need for more IRC housing for the elderly in towns and cities across the country”.
Adlington Retirement Living’s objective is to empower the older generation to live a long, happy and healthy life, supporting their independence, well-being and happiness. It creates beautiful apartments in quality retirement communities, providing safe and secure environments with activities, extensive communal facilities and beautiful private gardens.
Dr Ed Gladman, CEO of Adlington Retirement Living, said: “In the UK, there’s some confusion around the difference between an Integrated Retirement Community, retirement living apartments and a care home, and sadly a high proportion of the general public think of an ‘old people’s home’ when they imagine an IRC.
“Integrated Retirement Communities offer people a way to retain their independence for as long as possible, choosing where they want to live with the safety net of care options being readily available if they are needed in the future. They also keep older people engaged with wider society which is key to tackling loneliness and isolation in later years.
“There’s an urgent need to address the shortage of appropriate housing for older people and in order to do that, we need planning improvements. If local authorities were obligated to allocate suitable sites for IRCs this would be a huge step forward. I also feel that councils should have to demonstrate a supply of suitable developments in their area much like the 5-year housing land supply.
“We’re hopeful that yesterday’s event made an impact on the MPs who attended and we look forward to more Governmental support for the sector.”
The 2023 ARCO Parliamentary Expo took place on Monday 19 June 2023 in the Churchill Room, Houses of Parliament, Westminster. Representatives from the sector included Adlington Retirement Living, Inspired Villages, Extra Care Charitable Trust, Tonic, Retirement Villages Group, Mayfield, Chelsea Pensioners, Royal Hospital and St George’s Park.
