2nd opinion: Cinders must go to the ball

It needs a mechanism for coping with increases in demand, and effective funding streams for growth areas. However, in national strategies – including this year's communities plan – this planning is nowhere to be seen.

At MacIntyre and at the National Housing Federation, we are left scouring the small print for any mention of supported housing. We are finding ever more creative ways to meet housing need, but these schemes are always filled, and fast. So, what needs to be done?

Housing associations need to give people real opportunities, not just a roof over their heads. This is as much an issue for housing providers as for other public and voluntary agencies. Increasingly, we recognise the need for a joined-up approach to strategic planning – agencies at all levels working together offer the best way forward.

However, associations are continually faced with the not-in-my-backyard syndrome. The future of supported housing requires turning Nimby to Imby, and on a grand scale. This is bound to be a long and extensive process, but if we can pave the way for community development, supported housing will become mainstream.

Registered social landlords must become neighbourhood-focused, which will encourage those with supported housing needs to become part of their local communities.

Housing associations are good landlords, particularly in terms of rights and responsibilities, and are excellent, safe bases from which people who need support can build their lives. Unfortunately, it is still the case that people with a history of mental health problems cannot find work because employers won't take them on. It isn't necessarily prejudice that shapes this trend – it's lack of knowledge.

But if people with special housing needs are effectively supported, if their talents can be recognised and utilised, they can play a real role in their neighbourhoods, contributing as much as anyone else to the local economy.

There have always been unfulfilled needs within supported housing because of cash restrictions. The government initiative Supporting People has helped by increasing funds dramatically. Though issues remain over distribution, it provides a firm framework for the future.

The one certainty is that as areas identified for major growth continue to expand, so will demands for appropriate housing and support for people with special needs. This is true whether we're talking about homelessness, older people or those with learning disabilities.

We need to ask questions of both planners and providers. Do we have the will and courage to be creative about different uses for old sheltered housing projects, neither needed nor wanted? Can we move on from the minimum standards and needs-led mindset to help people in supported housing get what they want?

The answers to these questions lie with all of us involved in the sector, from government through to community level.

We need to be willing to work in partnership and share expertise to encourage empowerment through better, person-centred services. None of us can afford to forget about supported housing when planning for major growth.