A retired Coventry couple have spent the festive season in a smaller, more manageable home thanks to an initiative between a not-for-profit housing group and a council.
Jim and Mary Elvidge moved house thanks to an initiative set up by Coventry City Council and Whitefriars Housing.
The joint scheme aims to help tenants of not-for-profit Whitefriars Housing, with houses containing three or more bedrooms, to downsize and free-up more family homes in the city for those who need them.
Jim, 67 and wife Mary, 63, are two of the tenants who have benefited from the initiative. The couple, who lived in a family home in Hampton Road, Edgwick, for 25 years, decided to move as the maintenance of their large property and its garden were becoming overwhelming.
Thanks to the scheme the couple were supported in moving to a one bedroom bungalow in Coundon. Jim said: "We were only using one of the three bedrooms in our old house and it was getting too big for us to look after. We are really happy in our new bungalow. We've got some lovely neighbours, we're close to the shops and there is space to walk Tommy our dog.
"Whitefriars helped us move by arranging the removals and we could leave the furniture we didn't need and they got rid of it. Moving home can be a difficult thing to do but we're really happy where we are now."
The scheme, which has freed-up 13 family homes in Coventry, helps tenants with packing and removals, decorating, flooring, and fitting curtains or blinds.
Gaynor Reynolds, head of tenancy management, housing and community services at Whitefriars Housing, said: "These homes are now needed for families in the city. If people want to downsize then this new scheme gives them the help and support they need to make the move. We understand it can be a big step moving out of the family home but as Mr and Mrs Elvidge have found, it can be beneficial."
Coventry City Council Councillor Tony Skipper said: "The council experiences severe difficulties with the lack of family-sized accommodation in the city. There is great demand for family housing from people who are homeless or who have been waiting a long time for a family home. This scheme helps both the households moving into and out of family housing. The council is committed to meeting the housing needs of vulnerable people where ever it can."
For more information on the scheme call Richard Darbyshire on 024 7676 7126.
Posted: Tue Jan 03, 2012 11:03 pm