‘Homesharers’ pay around £300 and are expected to do an average of 40 hours of housework a month

By Victoria Munro

A non-profit is working with Waltham Forest Council to encourage people to move in with strangers and do chores in exchange for a cheap place to live.

Two Generations CIC says their scheme “is most suitable for those who genuinely enjoy helping others and prefer to be home in the evenings” and requires an average of 40 hours of house help a month.

“Homesharers” do not pay rent and are not legally tenants but pay a monthly fee of around £300 to Two Generations, as well as a possible contribution to household bills.

The non-profit was founded in 2018 by social worker Natasha Langleben and finance director Sam Brandman, who was inspired by his experiences with his elderly grandmother. While it already operates nationwide, a new pilot has seen them hire a “homeshare ambassador” to work with Waltham Forest Council to spread awareness around the borough.

While homesharers are not expected to provide health or personal care, instead doing tasks like shopping or cooking, Natasha said they offer what visiting care workers cannot, such as friendship and an overnight presence.

She said: “Lots of people can really benefit from homesharing, particularly in an early intervention way. It can provide help around the house for someone before their health deteriorates to the point where they need to move into a care home.

“Some people are quite hesitant at first – naturally bringing someone into their home is a big deal – but, once they get to know the person, all of a sudden they really want them to move in and want to speed the process up. 

“We have arranged somewhere between 50 to 70 homeshares so far. Most last a year or 18 months but our longest was three years.

“But they are long-lasting relationships. We have two ladies who are both on their third sharer but their first two sharers are still friends who come to visit.”

In addition to the fee paid by homesharers, “householders” – who do not have to own their home – also pay a £99 fee to Two Generations in exchange “for facilitating the match and providing ongoing support”, although there is a bursary option for those struggling financially.

Natasha said they undergo a pain-staking matching process and trial period to ensure the householder and homesharer get on well but that Two Generations will step in where there are any issues.

Asked about the possibility of the arrangement breaking down, she said: “It does not happen often but you are bringing two humans together who do not know each other. As with any flatshare, that sometimes won’t work.

“But our philosophy is we prefer no match to a bad match. Maybe seven or eight have broken down but, even then, it was not to the point where they wouldn’t speak to each other, it was just not quite working.”

While the majority of householders are elderly, the scheme is open to anyone who would benefit and Two Generations currently has one householder in her 20s who has a brain injury. Homesharers are often people in their 30s or 40s “looking for affordable accommodation”, although the group varies more widely. 

Natasha noted that the organisation’s longest homeshare involved a Syrian refugee and, in an article for the Municipal Journal earlier this year, wrote that they have arranged homeshares for “huge numbers of Ukrainian refugees” following the Russian invasion.

Natasha said: “A lot of people just have not heard of the scheme but, when we tell them about it, they usually think it’s a really good idea.

“There are some natural questions about safeguarding but it’s really key to what we do that we perform proper checks and ask for references.”

Asked about the protection offered to homesharers, Natasha said the organisation would step in if they experienced unreasonable demands and that, even where arrangements break down, there is normally a notice period before they would have to move out.

She added: “When they go in, they have chosen this as a housing option, knowing they will get an affordable arrangement and will have to give back. 

“We discuss how many hours a week they will give and what that will look like. If there are any concerns, we can step in and say ‘look, this is not what we discussed’.

“If things go really badly wrong, it does mean giving up their housing but, if you go and rent a room with someone, you can lose your housing if you do not like them. 

“There are always going to be some risks but we hear many more stories of people being welcomed into the family.”

Find out more about Two Generations on their website here.

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