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Adapted and accessible* homes are designed for people with physical disabilities and sensory impairments who need a home with a physical layout and adaptations to help them to live as independently as possible in the community.
Wiltshire Council aims to make the best use of homes specially built for disabled persons* or adapted for their needs and to help disabled persons in housing need to move quickly to more suitable accommodation. This page explains how we seek to achieve this.
You may need one or more of the following adaptations in any new home to maintain your independence.
o Level access to the home/access ramps
o Parking at the home
o Wheelchair accessible (wide doorways, turning circles)
o Level access shower
o Wet room
o Adapted kitchen
o Through floor lift (houses only)
o Stair lift (houses only – where the disabled person could safely use a stairlift)
In terms of evidence of adapted needs, one or more of the following is fine -If you have a physical disability or a sensory impairment, or a member of your household is disabled, we will need information about the accommodation requirements necessitated by the disability.
An existing GP or consultant letter** describing the disabilities and the adaptations necessary, or
An Occupational Therapy Housing Report – from a occupational therapist working for a local authority, MOD or health organisation
Care and Support Assessment – from local authority social care department or health organisation
If your physical disability is a relatively minor one, for example a difficulty climbing stairs from time to time, we will consider you to have a Ground Floor Need.
If you require significant adaptations in your home, we will consider you to be Adapted Assessed.
Accessible and adapted homes are advertised by the council and its housing association partners each week at the same time as general needs homes, homes for older persons and supported housing for people with learning disabilities.
Anyone may bid for these homes but housing applicants who are Adapted Assessed are given priority when an adapted or accessible home is allocated.
We ask our provider partners to state in advertisements whether they have adaptations fitted and to aim to identify those which may be suitable for adaptation, for example those with parking on relatively flat sites.
If you will need further adaptations to a home for which you successfully bid, you will need an occupational therapist, to advise on the adaptations necessary. A surveyor will need to determine whether any proposed adaptations would be structurally safe to make.
An occupational therapist may be contacted by calling Wiltshire Council’s Adult Care Department on 0300 456 0111. Please note that there is normally a wait for an occupational therapy assessment. More information about Adult Care is available on the Wiltshire Council website here.
Important note: homes advertised for people over a certain age eg 55 years
Many properties advertised include an age threshold of 50, 55 or 60 years. The council and its housing associations partners will in some circumstances consider younger disabled people for homes advertised for people over a certain age.
If you are a younger disabled person, and are Adapted Assessed, and you believe that one of these homes would be suitable for you, please ring Homes4Wiltshire on 0300 456 0104. We will arrange for a bid to be placed.
* accessible homes are wheelchair accessible with parking, wide doorways, turning space for wheelchairs, wet rooms or walk-in showers and may be fitted with lowered kitchen units, hoists and other specialist equipment
** please do not ask medical professionals for letters. Please give us the contact details for relevant professionals and we will contact them