Urban Edge Architecture is pleased to announce that it is headline sponsoring the Housing Learning and Improvement Network (Housing LIN) Annual Conference in London this week where it will also be hosting a thought-leading workshop session to examine new urban approaches to senior living.
Chaired by Inside Housing magazine’s award-winning Editor, Emma Maier, this year’s Housing LIN conference has the theme ‘An Ideas Fest: A Fresh Look at Homes for All Ages’. It follows in the wake of the recent CLG Select Committee’s report on housing for older people which called on the Government to recognise the link between homes and health and social care in the forthcoming social care green paper.
“As architects for the care and retirement sector we are always looking to further our knowledge to inform and improve our future designs. Housing LIN’s ability to bring together industry leaders from across the housing, health and social care sectors to share knowledge and ideas is essential if we are to develop a fresh look at homes for all ages,” says Sonia Parol, Associate Director, Urban Edge Architecture. “We have been working with Housing LIN for the last year and spoke at the East Midlands Region Housing LIN meeting in October and are excited to be supporting the vital discussions and knowledge share that will take place at the annual conference in London.”
During the conference, Sonia and Urban Edge Architecture Director Russell Gay will be hosting a knowledge and innovation workshop session titled ‘Senior Living: How can we meet the aspirations of the new generation?’ in which industry leaders will join a lively discussion on whether senior living should be provided within our towns and cities, as well as villages and rural locations.
“This question poses unique challenges and demands original thinking,” explains Sonia. “We must take into account an individual’s independence, quality of life and care requirements, balanced against their personal finances and that of the public sector. At Urban Edge Architecture, we believe that the social, cultural and intergenerational benefits that come with living in an urban environment should be enjoyed by all ages.
“Is there an opportunity for the aged 65+ group to significantly contribute to the positive experience of life in the city? This is something that should prove a crucial design driver for architects and urbanists over the coming decades.”
Following the Urban Edge Architecture workshop, Helen Hayes MP, member of the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee, will present a keynote address on the need for a national strategy on housing for older people. This will be followed by Dr Bill Thomas, creator of The Green House®, and co-founder of ChangingAging, and Global Chair of Evermore, USA, who will examine pioneering collaborative living lessons from America. Other keynote speakers throughout the day include Geeta Nanda OBE, Chief Executive, Metropolitan Housing Trust and Professor Jeremy Myerson, Helen Hamlyn Professor of Design at the Royal College of Art and a Visiting Fellow in the Oxford Institute of Population Ageing at the University of Oxford.
The Housing LIN Annual Conference takes place on Friday 23 March 2018 at the KIA Oval, London. The Urban Edge Architecture Workshop ‘Senior Living: How can we meet the aspirations of the new generation?’ takes place between 2.10 and 3pm.
If you would like to arrange to speak to Sonia or Russell before, during or following the event, please call 01780 755 665.
You can read more about Urban Edge Architecture’s urban approach to senior living here.
Sonia Parol’s Housing LIN blog posts can be found here:
– Dont ignore the silver pound
– Why architects must constantly seek to learn and improve