At Housing Scrutiny on 18 June councillors agreed to start the process of moving residents out of Stanton House, which provides sheltered accommodation for 32 households.
Stanton House is owned and managed by the council and provides sheltered accommodation across two floors and an adjacent house, plus communal facilities.
It is an ageing property built in 1960, which no longer meets modern requirements for space, safety or sustainability, and would require significant investment to bring up to current standards.
In April 2023 the council appointed Rock Townsend Architects (RTA) to carry out an independent appraisal on possible options for the future of the site. The appraisal concluded that the issues could only be addressed through such significant reconfiguration of the existing buildings, that redevelopment – rather than refurbishment – of the existing flats was the better option.
As the appraisals and this week’s report to Housing Scrutiny make clear, the building cannot be retained long-term in its current form - meaning it is not financially viable for the council to spend hundreds of thousands of pounds on urgent remedial work when the whole site needs to be redeveloped anyway to provide homes which meet modern standards in the near future.
Although we don’t yet have plans or a timeline for this redevelopment work, we now want to begin the process of supporting current Stanton House tenants to move into more suitable, better-quality homes in the city.
We know from our previous face-to-face conversations that some tenants are keen to remain part of a similar tight-knit community with existing friends and neighbours from Stanton House, albeit in a different location. Others have indicated they would be keen to remain living as close to the city centre as possible. We will continue to have one-to-one conversations with each tenant to understand their individual situation, and to work with them to determine the best solution for them and create an individual package of support.
All tenants are eligible for a statutory home loss payment of £8,100 and would be given financial and practical help to arrange a move. In addition, all Stanton House tenants will be prioritised as Band A on Home-link, and we would not anticipate a long wait for any tenants needing sheltered accommodation, as there are a number of suitable properties which could be accessed without a significant waiting period.
The council has a proven track record of assisting tenants to find suitable new homes when older housing is redeveloped as part of our ongoing programme to build new much-needed council homes in Cambridge, and to improve the standards of existing council homes, many of which were first built many decades ago and no longer meet modern requirements.
Council officers continue to liaise closely with Stanton House residents and their families, who can contact the council at any time with concerns or questions they may have, on 07749 588689.
Our residents’ ongoing safety and wellbeing is paramount during this transition period, which is why we have a 24 hour waking watch service at Stanton House to provide reassurance and assistance in the event of an emergency for as long as tenants remain there.
