Wanted: The architect of the future legal and regulatory framework bringing together housing, health and social care in the UK!

An ageing population. The housing crisis. Our health and social care systems under intense pressure.

We work hard to solve all of these issues – at the same time.

Our vision is for all older people to have the option to live in high quality Retirement Communities in their later years. Retirement Communities maintain independence, foster friendships and ease loneliness – they create positive outcomes for older people and their families. They also provide a benefit to our public services, free up housing for all generations, and make a huge contribution to our health and social care economy. And residents love them, as evidenced by satisfaction surveys. If that’s not something worth getting involved in, what is?!

In the UK, sector regulation and legislation for Retirement Communities is still in its infancy. ARCO has put in place its own Consumer Code, designed to drive up standards and consumer confidence, as an excellent starting point for future Retirement Community regulation. Now, the development of sector-specific legislation alongside ongoing development of our self-regulatory function has become a critical focus for ARCO. Our new Head of Regulation & Compliance will tackle the exciting challenge of developing a framework of recommended sector-specific legislation, creating what could be the basis of the Retirement Communities Act UK.

Key tasks of the role

• Leadership and management of the Regulation & Standards function within ARCO, working with the Standards Committee and Board, and external assessors.
• Whole system oversight of ARCO’s self-regulatory function, including: 1. Overseeing the annual assessment programme and processes; 2. Ongoing development and improvement of the standards programme and Consumer Code; and 3. Managing ARCO’s complaints procedure, arising reputational risks, and issues that could impact on confidence in the sector.
• Engagement with Government, partners, and colleagues to: 1. Develop an overall framework that could form the basis of the Retirement Communities Act UK; 2. Develop policy modules for complex areas where legislation is absent and needed; and 3. Achieve practical solutions on areas of changing legislation impacting on the sector.