Centre for Policy on Ageing


The Centre for Policy on Ageing is moving and, from 1st January 2012, our new address will be Centre for Policy on Ageing 28 Great Tower Street London EC3R 5AT All other contact details remain the same
The Centre for Policy on Ageing's report on the changing role of care homes summarises developments in residential and nursing home care historically and to the present day. Using data from the 2003, 2006 and 2009 Bupa censuses of it's care homes residents, the report builts a profile of the current care home population and identifies how that population has changed in recent times and is likely to change in the future.
In 2002, EU member states adopted the United Nations' International Plan of Action on Ageing and endorsed the Regional Implementation Strategy for Europe. To mark the 10th anniversary of this event, 2012 has been declared 'European Year for Active Ageing and Solidarity between Generations' . The main objectives will be to promote active ageing in employment; promote active ageing in the community through active citizenship, volunteering and caring; promote active ageing at home through enabling healthy ageing and independent living and enhance cooperation and solidarity between generations.
UK Older People's Day 2011 took place on 1st October and was celebrated by a series of events on and around that date. The theme for UK Older People's Day 2011 was "Getting and staying active in later life". October 1st also marked the United Nations International Day of Older Persons . This years theme for the International Day of Older Persons was "Madrid+10: The Growing Opportunities and Challenges of Global Ageing".
The Centre for Policy on Ageing (CPA) welcomes the recommendations set out in the independent report by the Dilnot Commission published on 4th July 2011. The current funding system for adult social care in England is unfair, unduly complex and has been neglected to the point of near collapse. The Commission proposes a 'strong foundation on which to build reform of the social care system' and one where no-one will be expected to lose all their savings and assets in order to fund often unexpected and 'catastrophic' costs of care and support. CPA urges the Government to act quickly and commit to the Commission's achievable timetable of a White Paper by next Spring.
The Centre for Policy on Ageing was commissioned by Bupa to carry out the research for its "Keep Dancing" report, launched on 10th June 2011. The report, was part of Bupa's "Shall We Dance" global challenge, details of which were reported on the BBC "You and Yours" radio programme on 10th June.
In May 2011 the Office for Disability Issues published the final report of its South East Regional Initiative to promote 'independent living' for older people with high support needs. The regional initiative established both broad principles and individual lessons to be learned from projects taking place in Oxfordshire, Portsmouth and West Sussex. The Centre for Policy on Ageing was a contributor to the work of this project.
"Care and Compassion?", a report from the Health Ombudsman released on 15th February 2011, outlines 10 cases of poor care of older people in hospital. To what extent does this arise from ageism and age discrimination? The Centre for Policy on Ageing has recently published a series of reviews of ageism and age discrimination in health and social care monitoring the evidence and making recommendations.
"How can local authorities with less money support better outcomes for older people?", written by CPA, was launched by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, as part of its Solutions series, on 19th January 2011. Research shows that older people want and value low-level support - 'that bit of help' But the benefits of investing in this are realised over many years, making it harder to prove impact and protect funding in the face of severe pressure on spending. This review provides examples from across the UK of imaginative, affordable and effective ways of supporting older people's health, well-being, social engagement and independence.
The Centre for Policy on Ageing's popular Policies on Ageing web page provides a brief introduction to key current policy issues in ageing and older age and an easy link to source documents. Latest additions include the Department for Health's 'Vision for Adult Social Care'.
'Reflecting on User-Involvement and Participatory Research', the tenth report in the CABS/CPA ageing research series, was launched at the CABS 15th anniversary event on Tuesday, 2 November 2010 at the Open University. Further details are available on the Publications and Events web pages.
The Centre for Policy on Ageing (CPA) is highlighting its recent report for the Runnymede Trust, The future ageing of the ethnic minority population of England and Wales. By 2051, in England and Wales, there will be 3.8 million black and minority ethnic older people aged 65 and over and 2.8 million aged 70 and over. The ageing of individual ethnic minority communities will have an impact not only on the need for services but also on the communities themselves. For example, it is estimated that between 2001 and 2051 there will be a 45-fold increase in the number of people with dementia in the Black African ethnic minority community. The full report can be found at www.cpa.org.uk/reportsandreviews.
The report was reviewed, and the implications for social care discussed, in Community Care magazine 4th November 2010.
The Centre for Policy on Ageing with the Social Care Workforce Research Unit (SCWRU),Kings College, London is jointly hosting a series of afternoon seminars "The New Politics of Ageing". Full details are available in the Events section of this web site.