Council to seek a new developer and operator of UK's first purpose-built LGBTQ+ majority Extra Care housing scheme

The Council will begin the process to bring a new housing provider with extra care experience on board to deliver the new LGBTQ+ majority Extra Care housing project in Whalley Range, south Manchester.  

A new competition will be held later this year and the successful housing delivery partner will be part of a tripartite strategic partnership with Manchester City Council and LGBT Foundation. 

The housing association partner will own and be responsible for designing the scheme through a co-production approach with the Council and LGBT Foundation - alongside a Community Steering Group made up of local people in Whalley Range and members of the LGBTQ+ community.  

The housing association partner will manage the scheme, with care services commissioned by the Council, support provided to LGBTQ+ residents by LGBT Foundation and allocations agreed by a panel made up of all three partners – along with the care provider. 

The Council had been in negotiations with Anchor, a national older person’s housing provider, around a land deal for the site on Russell Road in Whalley Range and to operate the LGBT majority Extra Care development.  
 
Cllr Gavin White, Manchester City Council's executive member for housing, said: 

The Russell Road scheme is a flagship, first-of-its-kind development that will create a safe and welcoming housing community for older LGBTQ+ people in Manchester – and we remain absolutely committed to delivering the homes the community needs.  

The three partners have agreed that the local management arrangements required to meet the specific needs of LGBTQ+ communities within Manchester city mean there will be other organisations better-suited than Anchor to take it forward. The Council – in partnership with the LGBT Foundation - are in the process of seeking a new development and management partner for the Extra Care development.  

We would like to thank Anchor for their work on developing this scheme so far - including working with the Community Steering Group on best practice for this type of housing - and we look forward to seeing this important development come to fruition in the coming months.

Dr Paul Martin OBE, Chief Executive of LGBT Foundation, said:

We are as committed as ever on delivering the right extra care scheme for the LGBTQ+ residents of Manchester, and we will continue to work with the Council to find the most appropriate partner to meet the needs of LGBTQ+ people over 55.

Our research clearly demonstrates that the needs of LGBTQ+ older people are still not being addressed, and this scheme will help to ensure that these inequalities are met.  We are hopeful of a speedy resolution and along with our Community Steering Group we look forward to forming a strategic partnership with the new provider, to put communities at the heart of the development of this ground-breaking scheme.

Jane Ashcroft CBE, Chief Executive of Anchor, said:

We are pleased to have had the opportunity to play a part in such a significant development for the LGBTQ+ residents of Manchester, which will also inform our approach on future work elsewhere. We very much look forward to seeing the development take shape.