POLICY: System failing older people

This rise in our older population reminds us that we need to prioritise the needs of older people in society.

And we need a more considered funding strategy than the short-term measures announced in the Government’s budget.

The Government must ensure that good social care, housing and healthcare remains at the top of its agenda.

The sector is looking to the Government to produce viable alternatives to a system which, all too often, sees vulnerable older people fall through the cracks.

The appointment of a dedicated Minister for Older People would send a clear message that the Government is serious about addressing the needs of today’s and future generations of older people.

Furthermore, the social care green paper is a chance for policymakers to review social care reform and funding, and to do it right.

We should celebrate that, as a nation, we’re living longer, but it’s hard to do so against this backdrop of a system that is failing to adequately address older people’s needs.

Jane Ashcroft, CBE,

Chief Executive of Anchor