Just over a year ago, the Centre for Ageing Better started a campaign for a Commissioner for Older People and Ageing, in partnership with Age UK, Independent Age and the National Pensioners Convention.
As the campaign passes its first anniversary, public support is growing for an independent commissioner to act as an advocate and give older people a voice that reflects their views and experiences. Launching the campaign was a response to the concerns of many older people who felt that they were being marginalised from society, not being listened to in the corridors of power and lacking a representative voice.
It was also a response to the many ways that society is letting down both the older population of today and tomorrow by failing to adequately prepare for significant demographic change and facilitate the changes needed to make this country a better place to grow old.
Widespread support
Since our launch, the campaign has grown and grown. More than 80 organisations, including the Homecare Association, Care England and the GMB union, quickly backed our call. The public has also spoken on this issue, and it is clear there is a lot of support for a Commissioner for Older People and Ageing in England.
To mark the anniversary of our campaign launch, we took our calls to the heart of Westminster by delivering a petition of more than 36,000 signatures to the doors of 10 Downing Street as well as delivering it to Labour and Liberal Democrat representatives.
To support the petition hand-in, the campaign revealed new polling of more than 1,100 people aged over 65 in England which found that three in four (75%) do not believe that society understands the issues facing older people.
A commissioner could champion the rights of older people, which can be easily forgotten and overlooked. As we saw during the COVID-19 pandemic, this can have devastating consequences. The Government’s policy to discharge care home residents from hospitals without testing led to thousands of unnecessary deaths with the High Court eventually ruling it to be ‘unlawful’.
A valuable asset
There needs to be an independent voice to speak up and protect the rights of older people, particularly in times of crisis. Aside from being an important voice protecting the rights of older people during crises, a Commissioner for Older People and Ageing could also work with employers, civil services and other relevant sectors to challenge discrimination and improve practices.
We need a commissioner to act as an independent champion for older people and ensure that policymaking across Government considers the long-term needs of our ageing population.
There are 11 million people aged 65 or over in England. In 10 years, this will grow to more than 13 million and there is currently little connected thinking in Government about how we can ‘age better’ in the context of an ageing population.
A commissioner would be a valuable asset to the Government in identifying the challenges and opportunities of an ageing population and bringing an independent, non-partisan approach to finding solutions. They could champion reforms like pension scheme auto-enrolment, which transformed the preparedness of all ages for retirement. There are many crucial long-term reforms that are needed.
Growing ageing inequalities
A commissioner would also help address growing ageing inequalities. Already, many older people are marginalised in the labour market, or dealing with poverty, ill health and ageism.
More than two million people of state pension age are currently living in relative poverty in the UK and people in the poorest areas can expect to live with a disabling condition for up to 18 years longer than those in the wealthiest areas.
These issues have consequences for our economy, our national productivity, and they further entrench inequalities as we age. Unless progress is made, these numbers will only get worse. With the right resources, a Commissioner for Older People and Ageing would look at these inequalities and work with Government and other organisations to identify preventative solutions that help everyone enjoy a better ageing experience.
With older people making up a larger proportion of the population than ever before, we must start to address some of the deep-rooted and harmful ageist stereotypes that exist in society. As our Ageism: What’s the Harm? report details, ageism has adverse effects on the mental and physical health, employment outcomes and financial wellbeing of individuals.
A Commissioner for Older People and Ageing could play a transformational role, challenging the age discrimination that half of adults aged over 50 in England experienced in the last year.
Challenging societal norms
Ageism negatively impacts mental health in a number of ways, including how negative portrayals of older people can lead to poor body image or increased anxiety about getting older and being patronised and infantilised by people, such as healthcare professionals.
It can also negatively impact mental health through the stress of negative experiences in the workplace, such as being overlooked for promotion, feeling forced into retirement or the loneliness caused by living in communities that are not age-friendly.
Ageism affects an individual’s physical health too, through receiving care and treatment that is based on age rather than an objective assessment of health needs, engaging in unhealthy behaviours because of a negative outlook on the prospects of ageing or living in a home that is not safe or doesn’t meet your needs as you age.
To counter prejudice towards older people, we need it to become a societal norm that negative stereotypes are challenged and positive attitudes towards ageing and the contribution that older people make to society are promoted.
A Commissioner for Older People and Ageing in England could work to shift attitudes, empowering older people and driving more positive outcomes. This would unlock opportunities for older people and benefit the whole of society.
Ageing is something that everyone experiences and improving the experience will benefit all of us. Everyone deserves equal opportunity to live healthier, dignified and more financially secure later lives.
A Commissioner for Older People already exists in Wales and Northern Ireland and they have lead campaigns on cross-cutting issues that affect older people from all walks of life, from bus passes and care during COVID-19 to the uptake of social security entitlements.
A just cause
When we launched this campaign last year, we knew there was a compelling case to create a Commissioner for Older People and Ageing in England. Events since then have only served to highlight the necessity and urgency for change. Our anti-ageism campaign, Age Without Limits which launched in January, has brought further attention to the overwhelming presence of ageism within our society.
Amongst a raft of findings detailing the scale and nature of ageism in England, the campaign has revealed that more than half (53%) of people aged 50 and above believe the depiction of older people in the media is negative, stereotypical and does not reflect their lives.
The finance chapter of our State of Ageing 2023/24 report, which was published in March, highlighted the dire financial insecurity and inequality among older people. The report detailed how large proportions of people aged 70 and above, who are in serious financial difficulties, have cut back on the essentials of life.
Older people are eating less than they should, avoiding going to the dentist and reducing the number of showers or baths they have. This situation seems set to deteriorate over the coming years following the Spring Budget, which the Resolution Foundation calculated would increase a pensioner’s tax bill by an average of £1,000 by 2027/28 because of frozen income tax thresholds.
In addition to this, our new Safe Homes Now campaign revealed the reality for millions of older people who are living in homes that pose a direct threat to their health. For the first time since 2016, the number of non-decent owner occupied homes has risen, with 2.2 million homes now defined as unsafe.
If we want this country to become the best place in the world to grow older, we need to protect the rights of older people and better consider our ageing population in the policies we set and the society we build. That work needs to start with the creation of a Commissioner for Older People and Ageing.
Calling all care providers
While the Centre for Ageing Better is calling on Government to put older people at the heart of policy planning, there is also an opportunity for care organisations to look more closely at their own practices.
This means not only in the way that they care and support older people but the way that they recruit and retain older workers, particularly in the face of skills shortages and unfilled vacancies in the care sector.
There are around 350 signatories to our Age-friendly Employer Pledge, a nationwide free programme for employers that recognise the importance and value of older workers and who are committed to improving work for people in their 50s and 60s.
Pledged employers already include more than 60 businesses from the health and social care sector including Anchor Hanover Group, Practice Plus Group, Essex Cares Ltd, CareTech Community Services and Cygnet Health Care.
For more information on the Age-friendly Employer Pledge, visit https://ageing-better.org.uk/age-friendly-employer-pledge.
Do you think that a Commissioner for Older People and Ageing in England would be beneficial? Leave a comment on this article or join the conversation to share your thoughts.
Dr Carole Easton OBE is Chief Executive at the Centre for Ageing Better.
Email: [email protected] X: @Ageing_Better