As our Land & Estate Management team are responsible for the lettings and management of almshouses across the South, we were very interested in a recent study published by the Bayes Business School and reported in The Guardian that showed residents who move into almshouses enjoy longer lives.
Co-author of the Almshouse Longevity Study, Ben Rickayzen, said that “Almshouses seem to wipe away the negative impacts on health and social wellbeing commonly experienced by older people in lower socioeconomic groups, particularly those living in isolation.”
The study, supported by the Almshouse Association, “proved that this ancient form of housing still addressed the evolving needs of older people living in modern-day society.” This is a sentiment we’d certainly echo as Clerk to the Trustees of a Dorset almshouse charity and certainly what we see in our day-to-day interactions with almshouse tenants. It’s heartening to see the charitable – and clearly effective – work of almshouses charities being recognised.