ARCO Conference Day 2: Knowledge Exchange Day

The Knowledge Exchange Day on 7th July‎ will provide the opportunity for deeper exploration of the key topics facing the Integrated Retirement Community sector. Attendees will be able to choose four workshops from a range of interactive options. Please note that there is limited capacity on this day and we have previously sold out for Day 2 approximately a month in advance.

The Knowledge Exchange Day is likely to once again be substantially oversubscribed, and we will sell tickets to the Knowledge Exchange Day on a first-come-first-served basis.

Advance booking for ARCO Members and Partners is now open. All members of the ARCO network are eligible for the ARCO Network special ticket prices. Tickets for Day 2 can be booked as part of a full two-day conference tickets or for the day only.

The Knowledge Exchange Day progamme:

1. Growing the sector: Perspectives from New Zealand

Hear from the leading lender in the retirement village sector in New Zealand on how decisions on funding are made, how quickly schemes fill up, how both consumers’ and lenders’ interests are protected and how New Zealand’s retirement village sector grew to be the largest in the world (relative to the size of its population).

Speaker: Richard Hinchliffe, ANZ

2. The i-Age: Maximising value for operators and residents in a new era of Integrated Retirement Community living

Technology sits at the heart of providing personalised care for residents as they age. This interactive workshop will explore the three i’s of i-Age: Innovation, Interconnection, and Investment; including how the right services, support and technology can enable operators to lower the total cost of care, increase ROI and drive future revenues as well as exploring how technology could support the creation of the “20-minute community”.

Speakers: Kevin Willetts, James Twigg & Simon Morris, TIS

 3. Planning policy: a crucial system undergoing constant change

Planning policy has long been a key ingredient to accelerating the IRC sector’s growth, but too many authorities do not have adequate policies in place to deal with their ageing population. With the new Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill currently in parliament, hear from the planning sector’s leading experts about both the current state of play, but also about how planning policy might change in the future.

Speaker: Iain Warner, Tetlow King

 4. Sales data and beyond

According to Einstein, “Not everything that can be counted counts and not everything that counts can be counted.” Sherpa analysed a year of sales data from more than 100,000 later living units in 2021 to determine what drives results—and what doesn’t. But there’s more to the story. In this session, Sherpa co-founder Alex Fisher will explore both the quantitative and qualitative factors that contribute to increased sales and occupancy in senior housing.

Speaker: Alex Fisher, Sherpa

 5. Righthold: a new contract between operators and consumers

With the leasehold system under pressure, there is a clear need for the sector to develop a new offer for property ownership in IRCs. This session will outline the proposal for Righthold tenure, the legal thinking behind it, and its attractiveness to customers and operators alike.

Speakers: Kyle Holling, Trowers & Hamlins, Sally Ireland, ARCO, further speakers will be announced

 6. Websites and property listings: challenges for compliance in the new regulatory landscape

With a variety of regulators and Ombudsmen new and old now interested in property sales and lettings, how can IRC operators successfully market their properties and communities while ensuring compliance with the latest requirements?

Speakers: Dr Alan Woods, The Consultant Connection, John Hesford, ARCO, further speakers will be announced

 7. Retirement reconsidered: new data and analysis from 4,000 older people living in the UK 

In 2022, ARCO commissioned the largest ever consumer poll of housing preferences for over 65s in the UK with YouGov. In this session, we will take you through key findings from the survey response and explore what this means for the Integrated Retirement Community customer proposition. What are the main obstacles to customers considering moving to an IRC and how can this data enable us as a sector to provide more choice and certainty for our ageing population?

Speakers: Michael Voges, Chief Executive, ARCO, Shandi Petersen, Director, Social Psychologist, Constant Catalyst

8. Is rental here to stay or is it a post covid boom?

Rental has been the buzzword in the sector for the last couple of years, but is it really going to grow as much as everyone is predicting? JLL will explore where the rental sector currently is, and if it will be as big as the mainstream BTR sector. Supported by data we will examine the opportunity for growth and how this will cross over with the for sale market through shared ownership

Speakers: Harri Morgan, JLL, Lauren Hetherington, JLL