FAQs

Fairseat Foundation is a not-for-profit registered company, limited by guarantee and with no beneficial shareholders. It is run by a Board of Directors. The MD is the only executive board member and the remainder all donate their time and expertise. The present make-up of the Fairseat Board is as follows:

• George Orr – Chairman
• Ben Allen – Managing Director
• Fiona Fox
• Rachel Mbai
• John Ponsonby
• Michael Round-Turner
• Carol Stemp

You can find simple bio’s about each on our website here.

All accommodation is:

• single storey and at ground level
• has a verandah
• has direct access into the gardens
• is built with no internal steps.

Available living spaces are:

• Rooms/bedsits (9) – en-suite with a verandah overlooking lawns and gardens.
• Apartments (10) – similar to bedsit but with a separate sleeping area and en-suite bathroom. There is a separate laundry and store room. Total area is approximately 63 Sq M.
• Single cottages (6) - one large bedroom en-suite, central sitting/dining room with fire place, small kitchen, office/carer’s room – they tend to vary slightly from each other depending upon when they were built.
• Double Cottages (10) – similar to single cottage but there are two large bedrooms en-suite. They vary slightly to each other but all have fire places in the sitting room.

It all depends! Costs depend upon the services utilised, the premises occupied and a number of other individual parameters. Details of fees and charges can be found  by contacting our office but it is advisable to make an appointment with the Manager to discuss your likely costs.

Prospective residents are encouraged to visit Fairseat Foundation by calling the Administration Office (0735 503 440 or 0701 719 440) and scheduling a time to learn more about the choices offered. Appointments can be obtained by emailing (admin@fairseat.org) or calling the Administration Office using the details above.

There are no rigorous “pre-requisites” for entry to Fairseat. Applicants:

• need to be physically & mentally fit for their age,
• need be able to pass our Entry Interview,
• need to be genuinely retired and not working,
• need to be able to demonstrate that they are financially able to afford Fairseat.

Fairseat is NOT a nursing home and applicants with dementia or Alzheimer’s will not be considered. Potential residents are generally advised NOT to wait until they think they are ready for Fairseat – experience shows that this is often too late. If you are a potential resident but you are concerned about any of the exclusions above then you are encouraged to contact the office and make an appointment to share your concerns with the manager who can better advise on your situation.

As of mid-2023, we have about 190 people on our waiting list. Do not be disheartened though. The demand for a place varies greatly in terms of the type of accommodation and the time frame they might want it in. It is almost impossible to gauge the demand at any one time and we simply go to our list and put the word out whenever we have a property available. Sometimes, where we have a known prospective resident who is very senior on the list, we simply enquire directly with those few members who have seniority rather than going to the whole list and raising unreal expectations. To get on our “Waiting List” one has to join as a “Friend” of Fairseat first. At the time of writing, this costs Kes 2,000/= per annum but is subject to change from time to time. To get onto the “Waiting List” one has to pay a one-off fee of Kes 5,000/=. Contact the Fairseat office for details on joining and paying for the membership fee and the waiting list.

• All utilities and 24-hour security.
• Full board including breakfast, lunch, light dinner, morning tea and afternoon tea.
• A carer for approximately 3.5 hours per day, 365 days per year, to undertake general house work, personal assistance with dressing, washing or toileting, any washing or ironing of clothes, and anything else that the resident may deem necessary and would be considered reasonable.
• Extra service care is available if it is required or desired at an additional cost. The most popular options are:
  • Full Day Care – where a resident has exclusive use of a carer for a full working day of approximately 8 hours,
  • 24-hour Care – where a resident has a carer with them at all times.
  • Details of fees and charges can be obtained from our office.
• Access to a range of community activities – details of which can be found here.

All items of a personal nature - including:

• alcoholic drinks,
• medications, vitamin supplements etc,
• personal toiletries such as make-up, shavers,
• reading material, newspapers etc.
• transport costs,
• Internet, DSTV and telephone costs.

We welcome pets but specific application must be made to the manager for each and every pet. The manager makes the decision as to whether a pet is allowed and there is no further avenue of appeal or negotiation. The major determinant as to whether a pet is allowed is its ability to add to the quality of life of the community – and most certainly not to detract from that in any way at all. All pets must have current vaccinations, appropriate licenses, be controllable and controlled, properly cared for and in good condition. As a general rule we tend to welcome old loyal pets and tend to dislike young, untrained animals.

Guests are always welcome. Entertain at your residence or in the Fairseat dining room. Overnight guests are welcome to stay with you in your residence if appropriate or you may reserve our guest apartment if it is free. There is a fee for all guest meals and stays which is intended to simply recover costs. Details of fees and charges can be found from the admin office. Alternatively, residents can do their own catering or employ outside caterers if they prefer.

Yes - we are a community, not an institution. Residents are encouraged to let the kitchen know if they are out for meals in order to assist with catering. Residents are also asked to let the manager know when they are planning to be away overnight or for an extended period of time to assist with catering, staff requirements and security. If residents are away for a significant period, currently after 7 nights, then there are credits available if the manager has been given appropriate notice.

It all depends! A number of our residents own cars and employ drivers. This is quite acceptable and we encourage our residents to be out and about as much as possible. However, no residents are permitted to bring with them, or employ directly, any domestic staff. Fairseat is not generally in a position to employ staff who are currently working for a prospective resident.

Yes - all prospective residents are required to sign a formal contract with Fairseat Foundation and pay the necessary deposits before they take up residency. As part of the contract, prospective residents are required to give us two guarantors to secure any debt with Fairseat.

Fairseat Foundation is NOT a nursing home and we do not accept applicants who will need nursing. Having said that, we do employ qualified nurses and there is normally a qualified nurse on duty 24 hours per day.

All residents are encouraged to have medical insurance, and if they have it already, then to maintain it. Any resident who does not have medical insurance is required to put down a substantial deposit. There is no interest earned on the medical deposit. Details of fees and charges can be obtained from the admin office. 

That is absolutely fine – many of our residents travel internationally or regionally on a regular basis. We simply request that you give the manager the dates of your travel so that we can plan for staffing, catering etc. If you are away more than seven days and you give at least two weeks’ notice then you are entitled to a credit – Details of fees and charges can be obtained from the admin office.

No. There is no interest payable on any of the deposits.

Anyone can act as your guarantor who we can actually go back to for payment if you leave Fairseat with debts unpaid. It is most common for family members to be asked to act as guarantors but they should be financially able to act as a guarantor. They must understand that if you leave Fairseat Foundation with debts unpaid, then we will look to them to pay the outstanding dues. It is important that they understand that some of these debts may well be third party liabilities - for example:

• Fairseat will purchase prescription drugs for a resident,
• Fairseat will sometimes assist residents to exit a local hospital easily and quickly by having the hospital bill settled on its account.

The guarantors will be held responsible for any such debts that remain unpaid.

Fairseat has “Fibre to the Home” provided by Safaricom to all its residences and some residences have access to JTL as well. Residents can access the internet by opening an account directly with the internet provider or simply speak to the office and they can assist in organising it but the cost is to the individual resident. Internet providers offer a range of packages depending upon the speed desired.

There is presently limited WiFi publicly available within the grounds of Fairseat but this is not guaranteed into the future. The password to access this WiFi can be obtained from the office.

No - you cannot take over your mother’s residence when she passes on. The contract is clear that the residency arrangement with your mother ends when she leaves Fairseat. You need to join as a Friend of Fairseat and get on the Waiting List in order to create your own position as a potential resident. The right of abode is not transferrable.

You need to bring everything for your residence. So you need appropriate furniture, bedding, pictures, curtains, and carpets. You need at least one set of personal cutlery and crockery if you are planning to take any meals or tea items in your residence. Generally residents would have enough for themselves and also a few guests. Bits and pieces that help to make the new residence feel like home are encouraged. Try to avoid the temptation of over-furnishing though. Many prospective residents will be coming from large family homes and it is not always sensible to bring such large furniture into the smaller residences of Fairseat.

The Entry Interview is purely that – a chat with our “Entry Committee”. There is no physical medical examination at all. The applicant is required to furnish the committee with a comprehensive medical report from their GP that covers their medical history and their current medical condition and details their medications. Whilst the applicant can be accompanied to Fairseat for the interview with somebody they trust, they will attend the actual interview on their own. It is intended to be a process to identify applicants who are not actually suitable for the Fairseat experience or whom Fairseat are unlikely to be able to care for in an appropriate manner. Not everyone will suit Fairseat and we try to identify this before they enter. In particular, Fairseat does not normally accept applicants who do not want to be coming to Fairseat.

The simplest thing is to change your postal address to Fairseat. Over time as you inform all those who send you physical communications with your updated postal address you can cancel your post box rental and rely on Fairseat’s postal address.

• Our physical address is:
  • Fairseat Foundation,
  • 15 Lonetree Estate Road, Rosslyn,
  • 00621, Nairobi, Kenya.
• Our postal address is:
  • Fairseat Foundation,
  • PO Box 670, Village Market,
  • 00621, Nairobi, Kenya.

We tend to collect our post between 2 and 3 times per week. All residents have a small pigeon hole into which any mail or notices for them are deposited.