HDB STUDIO APARTMENTS FOR ELDERLY

HDB STUDIO APARTMENTS FOR ELDERLY

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(Integration into community): **

49.

Assoc. Prof. Paulin Tay Straughan asked the Minister for National Development (a) whether there are plans to locate HDB studio apartments for the elderly in mature estates where there are significant proportions of elderly households so as to minimise geographical displacement of these residents; (b) what types of amenities will be incorporated to make these communities elder-friendly; and (c) whether these studio apartments for the elderly will be integrated with various apartment types so that there will be no spatial segregation of the elderly from the rest of the community.

Mr Mah Bow Tan: HDB’s Studio Apartments (SAs) are custom-built for elderly living. SAs come with elder-friendly features such as support hand-bars, non-slip tiles, lever taps and an alert alarm system. The blocks are barrier-free, and located near neighbourhood centres for easy access to shops, eating places and public transportation nodes.

To date, HDB has launched 17 SA developments in both mature and non-mature estates. All have been very well-received, with close to 100% take-up of units. Going forward, HDB will build more SAs to meet the demand. To ensure good geographical spread, they will be built in different estates including mature estates if land is available.

Since 2003, HDB has been mixing SAs and other flat types within the same block to promote social interaction across the ages. At the same time, we are mindful that concentration of SA units in one block help service providers like VWOs to better serve the elderly residents by having just one activity centre.

HDB will continue to build both mixed blocks and pure SA blocks to provide choice. In both cases, the SA blocks will be built as an integral part of a larger neighbourhood of different flat types. We will work closely with our partner agencies to ensure that both the hardware and software are in place to support healthy, active ageing.