If you own your own home you're responsible for repairs and maintenance. But what happens if you can't pay for those? Many older people find themselves in situations where they no longer have enough money: their savings already spent on earlier repairs or helping family members (including their own older relatives), or their financial plans scuppered by unexpected and serious ill health. Where do you go for help? A few years ago you might well have gone to the local council for a private sector housing renewal grant - but that's all gone in England, since 2010. So, if you find yourself - as Pete did, in his 80s - seriously ill with a heart condition, your heating and hot water packed up in the middle of winter, and you no longer have the savings to pay for repairs, where do you go? If you're lucky, you go to your local Care and Repair scheme - if there is still one. They're one of the few organisations that - without charge - will find alternative sources of funding (applying for funds from multiple charities), check your benefits, use approved local contractors and supervise the work, and provide extraordinary emotional support in the process. In Your Home Is Your Castle, couple Pat and Pete, and widowed Phyllis, explain why they needed Care & Repair's help and what receiving this has meant to them. For more information on this and other issues facing older homeowners across the country, see careandrepair-england.org.uk
