Amblers Orchard, Leeds

What facilities are available?

We’ll have a range of facilities at Amblers Orchard where you’ll be able to enjoy your time and meet others in the local community.

The communal gardens can be enjoyed by residents, their families and feature a:

• Pet-friendly area
• Games areas
• Event space

There’s lots of outdoor seating as well as a walking route to tempt residents and visitors outside and enjoy a bit of exercise.

On top of this, there are a host of communal facilities for residents including:

• Assisted bathing spa suite
• On-site salon for those important hair-dos
• Library room
• Hobby room
• Communal lounge
• Open-plan atrium area

The café, restaurant and salon on the ground floor are open to non-residents too. This gives an opportunity for residents to have a natter and bring their friends in.

How many one and two bedroom apartments will there be?

There will be 22 two bed and 41 one bed apartments.

Will the apartments be furnished?

No, all of the apartments will be unfurnished, but when the scheme first opens flooring and an electric cooker and hob will be gifted to the first person to let each apartment.

The plumbing and electrical points needed for a washer/dryer will be provided, as well as network points for phone and broadband.

You'll need to provide your own furniture and soft furnishings, but we can support you to source furniture if you don’t have your own to bring.

What are the heating and cooking facilities in the kitchen apartments?

When the scheme first opens an electric cooker and hob will be included and gifted to the first person to let each apartment. There’ll also be a restaurant and café facility where you can buy meals, drinks and snacks.

What are the bathrooms in the apartments like?

All the apartments have a wet room style bathroom with a shower. There’ll also be an assisted bathing suite which customers can book to use through a booking system.

To be able to apply for an apartment you will need to meet the eligibility criteria agreed by Leeds City Council and Home Group:

1. You have housing and care needs usually associated with, but not restricted to, older people
2. Leeds is your normal place of residence or you have a close family association
3. You have demonstrable care and support needs and/or housing that is unsuitable to meet your health and social care needs, this may include:
   - Age-related frailty
   - Physical/mental health issues
   - Multiple health problems
   - Sensory impairment
   - Loneliness and isolation
   - Safety and security
4. You have a current or predicted need for 24 hour, seven day a week access to emergency and planned support and/or an ability to benefit from this service
5. You have an eligible need as assessed by adult social care under the Care Act (2014) and as defined by the national eligibility threshold via a community care assessment that is undertaken by the adult social care social work team

How can I apply for a home at Amblers Orchard?

You can express an interest in living at Amblers Orchard through Leeds City Council or directly with Home Group by using the form below.

If you have a social worker they’ll be able to fill in a referral form for you or they can help you complete one - this can then be sent to Home Group alongside any care assessments.

If you don’t already have a social worker, you can refer yourself directly to Home Group by using the form below-  once we’ve received your referral our team can then contact you to chat you through the process. This will include having an assessment with adult social care to determine the level of care and support you need.

How will the apartments be allocated?

We’re working with Leeds City Council to allocate apartments and will use an expression of interest list (rather than a waiting list), as we need to allocate a mixture of care hours and consider people with different levels of care need.

When an apartment becomes available, the scheme manager will liaise with the care manager to establish the remaining care hour availability at the service, and they’ll then consider applicants on the expression of interest list who match the care hour need.

Will local residents be able to secure a tenancy?

In line with the eligibility criteria, we’ll consider where an applicant lives and any family associations when allocating apartments.

Will there be a laundry room on site?

There won’t be a communal laundry room available for customers to use as there’ll be space in the apartments to fit either a washing machine or combined washer/dryer. There will be a communal clothes drying area in the garden.

Can I bring pets?

We’ll work with you during the assessment process to determine whether it would be suitable for you to bring pets to the scheme, and we’ll assess this on a case by case basis. If you’d like to find out more about our pet policy please let us know by contacting us using the form below.

Who will deliver the care on site?

Our team will be available to deliver care on site 24 hours a day, seven days a week for those who have planned care packages or to respond to emergency needs. You can choose to have your care packages delivered by another provider if you would like to.

How much car parking is available?

There are 40 car parking spaces in total, including four spaces for disabled users only and six spaces with electric vehicle charging points.

How does the billing for utilities work?

Gas, electricity and water are all serviced through one main supply to the building and each apartment will have its own individual smart meter. You’ll pay for these services through Home Group, rather than having to set up an account with a utilities supplier.

How will repairs be managed?

Colleagues at Amblers Orchard can help you log a repair through our customer service centre. We’ll also have a handyperson available on site who can help with maintenance and repair issues.

What TV services will be available?
There’ll be BT and Sky connections available for customers to set up their own account.

Will the apartments be for rent or to buy and how much will they cost?

All apartments are available for affordable rent only.

The rent charge has been agreed with Leeds City Council and is eligible for housing benefit - the rent cost will be approximately £140 per week for a one bedroom apartment and £170 a week for a two bed apartment.

There will also be additional service charges - this will be finalised once the build is complete, but we expect this to cost approximately £90 a week, which has been agreed in line with housing benefit.

At Amblers Orchard, we’ll also provide one waking care colleague on site 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This resource will not be allocated to any planned support hours, but will be available to all customers (regardless of their chosen care provider) - to be used flexibly as needed in emergency situations. This is funded through the wellbeing charge, which is £45 a week per apartment and is mandatory for all customers. Having this additional resource offers you:

• Swift response and management by trained reablement team members to alarm calls for ad hoc support and in the case of an emergency, including liaison with other professionals
• The ability for even those with care needs to remain in their own home, safe in the knowledge that help is available if needed
• The ability for the provision of wellbeing activities out of core working hours to optimise social inclusion
• A reduction in the need to increase care packages at short notice, for example hospital discharges, where a customer may require additional short-term reablement support
• A reduced need for hospital admissions/readmissions

Tell us a bit about yourself...

I worked for Leeds City Council as a Customer service officer for more than 20 years. But in March 2021 I took voluntary redundancy. I am happily married to my husband, Kevin, with three daughters and 10 grandchildren.

What attracted you most about joining Home Group?

I did a little research and read some colleague reviews. I saw Home Group have a good reputation and people don’t like to leave.

What do you think will be the most exciting bit of the job?

The most exciting part of my role will be meeting new people and working in a brand new building.

Where do you think the most challenges will be?

My challenges are keeping the building looking as good as new.

How do you keep busy in your spare time?

I keep busy in my spare time by walking, exercising and looking after my children.

If you could be a superhero, which one would you be?

If I could be any superhero it would be Wonder Woman.

Tell us a bit about yourself
My name is Melissa. I have worked for Home Group for over two years. During this time, I have been lucky enough to work in different services.

I am the registered manager of our community and wellbeing service, Amblers Orchard. I have worked in the sector for over ten years. In fact it’s all I’ve known,apart from working at Greggs while I was in college! 

My team will know how important coffee and my Labradoodle Lucy are to me! I love to travel and see new things.

What attracted you to joining Home Group?
When I first applied to work for Home Group, I took a chance and applied for a maternity cover contract, it was the best decision. I looked on the Home Group website and instantly knew I had to apply. I love the values and everything they stand for. It’s amazing what colleagues within Home Group do for our customers and how we all support each other.

What is the most exciting part of your role?
No day is the same for me and that’s one of the things I love about my role. One day I could be writing risk assessments, the next I could be completing customer assessments or looking at finances.

What are your challenges?
Managing a team can be difficult but team work really does make the dream work! Together we support customers to reach their goals every day, working with other colleagues in Home Group and our stakeholders.

If you were a superhero which would it be?
If I could be a superhero I'd have to pick Flash. I would love the ability to time travel and of course be super strong!