‘You Have Got To Stick To Your Times’: Care Workers and Managers’ Experiences of Working in Extra Care Housing

Extra care housing (ECH) has been lauded as an innovative model of housing with care for older people that promotes and supports independent living. The study used a qualitative design to explore how care is delivered in four extra care settings in England over 20 months during 2016-2017. This paper reports findings from semi-structured interviews with 20 care workers and seven managers. The article argues that, despite being heralded as a new model, care workers in ECH face similar organisational pressures as those working in more conventional settings and, in turn, the care which they are able to provide to residents mimics traditional forms of care.

Key words (5) extra care housing; social care; the organisation of care; care work; older people.
What is known about this topic
• Extra care housing (ECH) is a form of housing with care for older people.
• ECH aspires to support older people to live independently for longer through the flexible provision of care in resident’s own apartments.
• Similar schemes exist in America and Europe, where they are known as ‘retirement living’, ‘assisted living’ or ‘special housing’.

What this paper adds
• The population living in ECH is changing, with more people having complex needs.
• Managers report that these changes are impacting on the way in which care is organised.
• Care workers report that these changes are undermining the ability of ECH to provide responsive and flexible care to residents.