Exciting Milestone! We've completed the purchase of 19 apartments to offer the first LGBT+ affirming retirement community homes in the UK
● Tonic@Bankhouse shared ownership sales have now launched
● Tonic Housing announced in March that the Mayor of London confirmed £5.7 million Community
Housing Fund loan for Tonic to purchase the properties
● Completion of purchase makes Tonic@Bankhouse the first LGBT+ affirming retirement community
homes available in the UK
Tonic Housing have today launched the sales of it’s older person’s shared ownership properties at Tonic@Bankhouse, marking a historic moment in LGBT+ housing history. The launch of sales, after completing the purchases this week, means they now offer the first LGBT+ affirming retirement community homes in the UK.
Established in 2014 to address issues of loneliness and isolation, Tonic Housing has been working to create the UK’s first LGBT+ retirement community, and was given a boost earlier this year after the Mayor of London confirmed a £5.7m loan from the Community Housing Fund to enable Tonic to make the purchases.
This is a significant milestone for LGBT+ community-led housing for older people, which has before now, struggled to get a permanent foothold in the UK. It is also a momentous moment for Tonic Housing, who are now able to apply to become a registered provider of social housing, so they can also directly provide affordable rented homes in the future.
Anna Kear, CEO, Tonic Housing said: ‘We are so happy to now own our first properties so that we can offer the first LGBT+ affirming retirement community homes in the UK to people who want these. We are really looking forward to our first residents moving in soon, with our initial viewings having been very successful. Our Building Safe Choices research showed the demand for community specific retirement provision, and these first shared ownership homes are the starting point for further Tonic mixed tenure schemes.