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Attitudes to inheritance in Britain
- Author:
- JOSEPH ROWNTREE FOUNDATION
- Publisher:
- Joseph Rowntree Foundation
- Publication year:
- 2005
- Pagination:
- 4p.
- Place of publication:
- York
With more families owning their own homes, more people will both bequeath and inherit assets. A key issue that this raises for social policy is whether people maintain their assets to leave as bequests (potentially raising the living standards of their children) or use them in later life to improve their own living standards. Almost half (46 per cent) of adults have inherited something. Most inheritances involve relatively small amounts; but 5 per cent of people have inherited £50,000 or more. Professional white owner-occupiers are most likely to receive an inheritance. The researchers conclude that inheritance plays an important part in many people’s lives but has not generally become entrenched as an expectation or duty. Most older people are willing to use their assets for themselves, rationally using some of their lifetime assets to meet needs in later life.
Options for financing private long-term care
- Author:
- JOSEPH ROWNTREE FOUNDATION
- Publisher:
- Joseph Rowntree Foundation
- Publication year:
- 2005
- Pagination:
- 4p.
- Place of publication:
- York
Long-term care provision in the United Kingdom has been the subject of much debate and analysis over the past decade, yet the issue of how to fund the cost of that care for future generations remains unresolved. Much of the debate has revolved around how the State should address the problem. As a consequence, the general public are unsure as to where their responsibilities and liabilities lie. There is a perceived unfairness around the current system which leaves significant financial responsibility resting with the individual above basic income and asset levels. Insurance plans designed to cater for the cost of care in later life have not been popular. As a result, most insurers have now withdrawn from this market.Investment-based plans have failed to maintain protection levels and have now also been withdrawn from the market. Annuities specially designed to fund care fees and which recognise reduced life expectancy do provide a solution for some, but access to advice at a time of crisis may be difficult. Equity release or lifetime mortgages are popular but are not being used as a way to fund care. The current pensions ‘crisis’ bears many of the same hallmarks as those relating to long-term care planning. As with the Pensions Commission Report, there does not appear to be one single solution to the problems surrounding long-term care. A combination of measures may be more likely to succeed.
Volunteering in retirement
- Author:
- JOSEPH ROWNTREE FOUNDATION
- Publisher:
- Joseph Rowntree Foundation
- Publication year:
- 2005
- Pagination:
- 4p.
- Place of publication:
- York
Volunteering can play a significant role in people's lives as they move from work to retirement. Yet various barriers, both institutional and attitudinal, appear to be deterring people from taking up volunteering later in life. For some older people, volunteering offers a 'structured' means of making a meaningful contribution in society once the opportunity to do so through work has been cut off. Whilst some older people volunteer because they have always done so, for others retirement is the trigger for volunteering for the first time. Older volunteers from black and minority ethnic communities were under-represented. Organisations had tried to broaden recruitment, usually without much success. This was put down to lack of resources for outreach work and to deep-rooted issues around the image of volunteering. Organisations which had had more success pointed to the importance of working with community leaders and black and minority ethnic groups in their community.
Teleshopping for people with limited mobility
- Author:
- JOSEPH ROWNTREE FOUNDATION
- Publisher:
- Joseph Rowntree Foundation
- Publication year:
- 2005
- Pagination:
- 4p.
- Place of publication:
- York
Home shopping is an important aspect of community care services for older and disabled people, but is costly and complex to administer. As social services struggle to find the necessary resources to support them, new approaches involving internet- or phone-based 'teleshopping' services are being explored. This research, designed and tested several models for teleshopping. It has provided new information on user needs, possible teleshopping models, and on technology options and financial and legal issues. An intermediate teleshopping model, for use before internet access becomes widespread, is identified. The project also explored the technology requirements for a more sophisticated internet-based service that might be developed in the future.