A new strategy and plan to increase supported housing has been put forward by Cornwall Council.

The plans was presented at yesterday at the council’s Health and Adult Social Care Scrutiny Committee.

Cllr Andy Virr, Cornwall Council cabinet member for adults and public health said: “It is important that we have housing available that can meet the needs of all of Cornwall’s population. We recognise that for some people this can be hard to access and this plan seeks to address this challenge.”

Supported housing is accommodation that is provided alongside support, supervision or care to help people with specific needs to live as independently as possible in the community. This includes older people, people with a learning disability, people with a physical disability, people at risk of or who have experienced homelessness, or people recovering from drug or alcohol dependence.

Cllr Virr added: “It’s very important to sign off the Supported Housing Strategy and the Implementation Plan to make sure we tackle the demand for these types of housing right now to make sure people are getting the support they need.

“We need to move away from the more institutional models of care and support and the financial impact of this is putting on the council’s budget.”

The strategy has been developed in partnership with the Housing Learning Improvement Network (LIN), alongside other partners and stakeholders across Cornwall.

The plan will next be presented to Cornwall Council Cabinet for their approval for the work to commence.