Sheltered Housing & The Bureaucratic Mind

In a recent landmark case, known as 'Garbet', his honour Judge Milwyn Jarman QC, sitting as a Deputy Judge of the High Court ruled that the decision to remove the warden service was unlawful for failure in consultation. The judge decided that they were contractually entitled to a resident warden service and the case will now proceed in Private Law bringing in all the other cases across the country.

A statement from Barnet Council said: "The pressing need to reform our warden service, which reflects an outdated and unbalanced model of supporting older people, and is not available to people who remain in their own homes, is as strong as ever."  According to Barnet Council's new leader. Councillor Lynne Hillan,"It's an outdated model. Why should people be supported because of where they live?"

Firstly, it is the bureaucrats who have decided that it is an 'outdated and unbalanced model of supporting older people' - a policy that has been forced on councils by cuts in central government grants coupled with the fact that the Supporting People grant, which funds warden's salaries, has been 'un-ringfenced' resulting in councils being able to spend that money on whatever service they wish.

Secondly, for a council leader to ask why people should be supported because of where they live is beyond belief. This stupid woman does not realise that it is not a case of supporting people because of where they live, but rather it is a case of supporting people because they need support. Neither is it the fault of the vulnerable and elderly that successive governments have not taken steps to provide sufficient suitable accommodation for an increasing need.

The stupidity behind the various policies by which vulnerable and elderly people are provided for can best be summed up by contrasting the 'penny pinching' that is prevalent in this area compared to the largesse of our present politicians to agree to the provision of £1.5billion to support a Climate Change initiative scam!