Winning this award is a great achievement

Foundations for Living is a landmark project supporting disabled people to live independently.

Foundations for Living includes three things:

• 24 affordable rented wheelchair accessible properties across three sites in Huntingdon
• 22 private flats
• The Saxongate Community Learning Centre, which is an inspiring and fully accessible space for disabled and non-disabled people including local businesses, community groups and Huntingdon Regional College.

Foundations for Living won the Housing Corporation Gold Award for Building Cohesive Communities in May 2008 and the National Housing Federation’s Independent Living and Older People Award in 2007.

The £7.5 million project started in 2001 as a response to local need and national policy. By working in partnership with Hill Residential, a commercial developer, the Papworth Trust was able to create the first scheme that fully integrates affordable accessible rented homes with private flats.

Foundations for Living is the first project in the UK to prove how a number of key mainstream services can be developed to be fully inclusive for disabled people across housing, support, employment, education and community integration.

Foundations for Living was made possible with the kindness and generosity of a large number of supporters.

“By designing-in access features from the start, not only is it accessible for disabled people, but its has proved very popular with people who appreciate the additional circulation space, a lift and level access throughout. It has added value to the properties.”

Andy Hill,
MD of Hill Residential