Few continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs) have been developed in the UK, although they are expected to become increasingly common. As a relatively new concept, there is a general lack of understanding of the characteristics and role of CCRCs and the issues they raise. This analysis of current and emerging policy and practice is intended to provide practical assistance to those involved
Few continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs) have been developed in the UK, although they are expected to become increasingly common. As a relatively new concept, there is a general lack of understanding of the characteristics and role of CCRCs and the issues they raise. This analysis of current and emerging policy and practice is intended to provide practical assistance to those involved in the planning and development process, especially local authority planning officers.
Subject terms:
local authorities, long term care, planning, retirement, communities;
There has been a growing policy emphasis on promoting independence for older people, offering them choices, and improving their quality of life. Retirement villages appear to serve current policy agendas very well. They offer purposefully designed barrier-free housing with its associated autonomy, a range of facilities and activities that are not care related which generate opportunities
There has been a growing policy emphasis on promoting independence for older people, offering them choices, and improving their quality of life. Retirement villages appear to serve current policy agendas very well. They offer purposefully designed barrier-free housing with its associated autonomy, a range of facilities and activities that are not care related which generate opportunities for informal and formal social activity and engagement, alongside a range of care and support services that can respond quickly and flexibly to a range of care needs over time.
Subject terms:
independence, older people, quality of life, retirement, communities;
People who most need to increase their pension contributions are least able or willing to do so; but people facing slightly higher pensions would be able to pay extra to raise their pensions, according to research at the Age Concern Institute of Gerontology, King's College London. Most people would also like to retire before 65 and many are prepared to pay to do so.
People who most need to increase their pension contributions are least able or willing to do so; but people facing slightly higher pensions would be able to pay extra to raise their pensions, according to research at the Age Concern Institute of Gerontology, King's College London. Most people would also like to retire before 65 and many are prepared to pay to do so.
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
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.
Subject terms:
life long learning, motivation, older people, retirement, voluntary organisations, volunteers, black and minority ethnic people;
As working lives shorten and retirement lengthens, there is concern over whether individuals make adequate provision to avoid poverty in old age. A study by Elena Bardasi and Stephen P. Jenkins of the Institute for Social and Economic Research examined the relationship between the risk of having a low income in later life and people's lifetime employment history. The study was based on data from
As working lives shorten and retirement lengthens, there is concern over whether individuals make adequate provision to avoid poverty in old age. A study by Elena Bardasi and Stephen P. Jenkins of the Institute for Social and Economic Research examined the relationship between the risk of having a low income in later life and people's lifetime employment history. The study was based on data from the British Household Panel Survey and a summary of the findings is presented here.
... the values underpinning their ideas on pensions and their expectations for retirement.
This study, by Steven Nesbitt and David Neary at the Department of Applied Community Studies, the Manchester Metropolitan University, looked at the ability of Bangladeshi, Pakistani and white men living in Oldham to make informed choices between alternative forms of second tier pensions provision. Attention was given to respondents' levels of knowledge of the alternative types of pension, the values underpinning their ideas on pensions and their expectations for retirement.
Subject terms:
income, older people, pensions, planning, retirement, South Asian people, decision making;
... benefits means that low-paid families can face high rates of marginal tax for at least 16 years. Families with children also face real dilemmas over their lifetime. Saving for retirement will make families poorer while there are children in the home but improve incomes in retirement. Failing to save for retirement reverses this so that avoiding child poverty may lead to poverty in retirement
In the short-term, policies to counter child and pensioner poverty and to promote work have produced positive results but further improvements will become more and more difficult to achieve. Policy focused on equal access to opportunities for low-paid people can fail because the opportunity is given too late to make a real impact on lifetime poverty or on long periods when savings and work incentives are seriously compromised. A lifetime 'opportunity trap' can exist where it is either too late or too costly to take up an opportunity or where taking it up has either no or only marginal impact on lifetime income profiles. Opportunity traps are heightened by having children - the combination of childcare costs, paying rent for family-sized accommodation, low pay and interactions with in-work benefits means that low-paid families can face high rates of marginal tax for at least 16 years. Families with children also face real dilemmas over their lifetime. Saving for retirement will make families poorer while there are children in the home but improve incomes in retirement. Failing to save for retirement reverses this so that avoiding child poverty may lead to poverty in retirement (the 'lifetime poverty see-saw'). Escaping from opportunity traps is difficult without raising earning capacity. Low-paid people may be able to catch up on one dimension of inequality but it would be very difficult to equalise life chances without combinations of generous pensions and good earnings progression. One-off interventions to raise income up to the average, such as retraining, are potentially more effective in reducing inequalities in life chances and bringing lifetime opportunities up to the average.
Government efforts to extend working life need to take account of the key role that employers play in retirement behaviour, an under-researched area. This study examined how people working for three organisations were affected by the interaction of their employers' policies and their own personal choices. The study looks at current retirement processes, barriers to effective retirement planning, employee views on retirement choices, and the merits of flexible retirement. Employees approaching retirement face a range of options. While early retirement was popular in the 1980s and 1990s, and is still used to shed labour, current economic circumstances favour retirement (either full or partial) at 'normal' retirement age or later. Employees may express preferences about retirement but final their retirements more efficiently. Most employees supported the idea of abolishing normal retirement ages. These are seen as arbitrary and unfair. It was generally felt that retirement decisions should be made on an individual basis, taking into account the needs of both the organisation and the employee. A large proportion of managers and employees like the idea of reducing workloads in the run-up to retirement. They also liked the idea of a 'flexible' retirement with employees drawing some pension while continuing to work reduced hours. The ability to take up such options, however, is likely to be affected by an individual's financial circumstances. The researchers conclude that attempts by governments to encourage people to work for longer must recognise that the context in which people negotiate retirement is an organisational one. They may have little personal discretion over the timing and manner of their departure from work. Urging individuals to change their behaviour will not be sufficient if organisations are not similarly encouraged to reappraise their management of older workers.
Government efforts to extend working life need to take account of the key role that employers play in retirement behaviour, an under-researched area. This study examined how people working for three organisations were affected by the interaction of their employers' policies and their own personal choices. The study looks at current retirement processes, barriers to effective retirement planning, employee views on retirement choices, and the merits of flexible retirement. Employees approaching retirement face a range of options. While early retirement was popular in the 1980s and 1990s, and is still used to shed labour, current economic circumstances favour retirement (either full or partial) at 'normal' retirement age or later. Employees may express preferences about retirement but final decisions are made by the employer under constraints imposed by the pension fund provider and by the accretion of custom and practice. For employees these decisions appear complex and arbitrary; for the employer they are tactical rather than policy-driven. The research confirmed the common finding that few employees have a good understanding of pensions. Better financial education would help people plan their retirements more efficiently. Most employees supported the idea of abolishing normal retirement ages. These are seen as arbitrary and unfair. It was generally felt that retirement decisions should be made on an individual basis, taking into account the needs of both the organisation and the employee. A large proportion of managers and employees like the idea of reducing workloads in the run-up to retirement. They also liked the idea of a 'flexible' retirement with employees drawing some pension while continuing to work reduced hours. The ability to take up such options, however, is likely to be affected by an individual's financial circumstances. The researchers conclude that attempts by governments to encourage people to work for longer must recognise that the context in which people negotiate retirement is an organisational one. They may have little personal discretion over the timing and manner of their departure from work. Urging individuals to change their behaviour will not be sufficient if organisations are not similarly encouraged to reappraise their management of older workers.
People are living longer but on average leaving the workforce younger, not always at a time of their own choosing. This has important implications for retirement incomes and for economic and social participation in later life. Since 2000, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation has supported a research programme on how people are making transitions in work and towards retirement after age 50. This research sheds new light on people’s experiences in the workforce, the manner in which they leave it and what is happening to over-fifties outside paid work. Findings reveal in particular the complexity of modern pathways out of work and factors that influence them: simple financial sticks and carrots are unlikely on their own to change retirement behaviour greatly.
People are living longer but on average leaving the workforce younger, not always at a time of their own choosing. This has important implications for retirement incomes and for economic and social participation in later life. Since 2000, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation has supported a research programme on how people are making transitions in work and towards retirement after age 50. This research sheds new light on people’s experiences in the workforce, the manner in which they leave it and what is happening to over-fifties outside paid work. Findings reveal in particular the complexity of modern pathways out of work and factors that influence them: simple financial sticks and carrots are unlikely on their own to change retirement behaviour greatly.
People leaving work before state pension age risk being poorer in retirement than if they had continued working. This qualitative study of 56 retired people in their fifties and early sixties profiled their experiences, decisions and attitudes before and after they stopped working. People's experience of leaving work differed. Some had left willingly, others had had little choice. Some had left
People leaving work before state pension age risk being poorer in retirement than if they had continued working. This qualitative study of 56 retired people in their fifties and early sixties profiled their experiences, decisions and attitudes before and after they stopped working. People's experience of leaving work differed. Some had left willingly, others had had little choice. Some had left gradually, others abruptly. Some had planned the move, others had had it forced on them with little control over timing. These differences could have profound effects on people's experiences, including whether financial circumstances measured up to their expectations. Those with least choice and control tended to experience greatest difficulties.