Press Release

OLDER PEOPLE IGNORED AND FAILED BY COUNCILS, NEW RESEARCH SHOWS

11 April 2008

Councils routinely turn a blind eye to the needs of older people in their area according to new research launched today (11th April) by leading older people’s charity Help the Aged.  The equivalent of around six million pensioners, or more than half the pensioner population (54 per cent), allege their local council rarely or never asks their opinion on issues affecting them. 

Councils also came under fire from one in three older people (31 per cent) for failing to meet their needs.  As part of its ‘Just Equal Treatment’ campaign, Help the Aged is calling on local authorities to extend the public sector equality duty - which currently requires local authorities to promote equality between people of different race, gender and disability status - to include age so older people’s needs are taken into account in public services.

The Help the Aged research also found that:

More than two out of five older people (44 per cent) have contacted their local councillor or council to raise issues or make a complaint;
Two out of five older people (41 per cent) regularly volunteer their time to help others in their local community.

Amy Swan, policy officer for Help the Aged, says: "It’s awful that so many older people feel ignored and let down by their local council.  Older people often make huge contributions to their local community through volunteering to help others. Their years of experience should be valued, not dismissed. 

"We live in an ageing society so it’s imperative that older people’s needs come high on the agenda for local authorities.  This needs to be more than just lip-service or the odd token gesture – when making decisions about public services, local authorities should be legally bound to consider the needs of people of all ages, including older people.

"All too often age is left off the equality agenda when disability, gender and race are, quite rightly, included. Extending the public sector equality duty to include age will ensure the needs of people of all ages are protected and that older people will no longer be ignored.

The Communities and Local Government Empowerment White Paper is being published in the summer.  In addition to calling on local authorities to ensure people are treated equally by extending the public sector equality duty to include age, Help the Aged is also calling for:

Local government and local councillors to reach out and listen to the views of the most excluded in the community and involve local representatives in decision making;

Local authorities to show an awareness of the needs of all older people when developing their comprehensive engagement strategies.

A new Help the Aged Communities Council report, Forgotten Voices, examining community engagement and active citizenship is available from http://policy.helptheaged.org.uk/_policy/default.htm