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Our voices: the experiences of people ageing without children
- Authors:
- BETH JOHNSON FOUNDATION, AGEING WITHOUT CHILDREN
- Publishers:
- Beth Johnson Foundation, Ageing Without Children
- Publication year:
- 2016
- Pagination:
- 40
- Place of publication:
- Stoke-on-Trent
This report details the experiences of people over 50 years old who are ageing without children and highlights the key themes and issues that affect them. This includes adults who have never had children, as well as parents who have become childless through bereavement, or those who are estranged from their children. The report is based on four focus groups attended by a total of 42 people, including four people from an all-male focus group and nine people from the LGBT community. It also draws on discussions on social media and the results of a 2015 Ageing with Children survey. The individual stories included in the report demonstrate that ageing without children is what could be described as a ‘wicked problem’, a problem that is difficult to solve because of incomplete, contradictory, and changing requirements. It identifies 6 key themes affecting people ageing without children: invisibility; being judged; "who will tell my story?”; being a carer for their own parents as a trigger point to recognising the problems they may face; practical support; and disconnect from other generations. It puts forward a number of solutions to the issue, including: for central government to take into account that increasing numbers of people will get old without family support; enable GPs, hospitals and social care services to identify people without family and to provide them with support or care at an early stage; investment in advocacy and intergenerational projects; better access to advice to help plan for later life; more education and training to service providers working directly with older people; and a campaign for the National Census to collect childlessness data for men; and increasing social awareness of the issue of ageing without children. It also makes recommendations for future research. (Edited publisher abstract)
AWOC15: the Ageing Without Children conference: 'But who will look after you when you're old?'
- Authors:
- AGEING WITHOUT CHILDREN, POSITIVE AGEING IN LONDON
- Publishers:
- Ageing Without Children, Positive Ageing in London
- Publication year:
- 2015
- Pagination:
- 15
- Place of publication:
- London
This report documents the key points and discussions from a conference held on 26 January 2015 and organised by Ageing Without Children and Positive Ageing in London. The key themes that emerged in the presentations and discussions include: people ageing without children are unrecognised in policy on ageing; people ageing without children are affected by multiple taboos such as ageism, sexism and homophobia; intergenerational relationships are key but difficult to forge in a society that is often suspicious of older people; lessons can be learnt from the experience of the LGBT community; men are ageing without children for as many diverse reasons as women; and fear of abuse and exploitation affecting older people without children. The report sets out a number of action points, including: campaigning to ensure policy and planning on ageing takes into account of people ageing without children; addressing the specific issues of people living with dementia; and ensuring that everyone is encouraged to plan for their old age. (Edited publisher abstract)
The experiences of people ageing without children
- Author:
- AGEING WITHOUT CHILDREN
- Publisher:
- Ageing Without Children
- Publication year:
- 2016
- Pagination:
- 23
This report begins to address the concerns many people have about the future of/for older adults without children. This report is based on 4 focus groups held in York, Leeds, Kingston upon Thames and Henfield in West Sussex. A total of 42 people attended the focus groups which included 4 people from an all-male focus group and 9 people from the LGBT community interspersed throughout all focus groups. In addition, 2 people were interviewed on a one to one basis and 4 people contributed case studies. The following six were the most common issues that arose in the focus groups, survey and on line discussions and findings are discussed in the report: invisibility; felling judged; not having someone who will remember and the feeling of loss and lack of legacy; being a carer as a trigger point; practical support; and disconnect from other generations. The report identifies areas for further research sets out possible solutions, including: local authorities identify how many people in their area are likely to age without children and incorporate this into their strategies on ageing; GPs, hospitals and social care services are able to identify people without family, provide support or care at an early stage and guarantee involvement of other services to ensure they are not left without support; and investment in intergenerational programmes and activities so that people ageing without children still have the possibility of engaging with other generations. (Edited publisher abstract)