FOLLOWING the Queen’s Speech, the Government has yet again put the reform of adult social care into the “too difficult” pile.

Covid-19 has highlighted the longstanding challenges faced by older people in the social care system, and we are likely to see their lives get worse at a time when demand for care will rise.

Even before the pandemic many older people were not getting the support they need to maintain their independence, social connections and quality of life but the challenges facing people ageing without children are particularly acute:

• There are 1.5 million people over 65 in the UK without adult children

• Older people without adult children are 25 per cent more likely to have to move to a care home

• The number of older people with disabilities who live alone and have no child is projected to increase rapidly, rising by nearly 80 per cent between 2007 and 2032

In the absence of a proper plan, Ageing Without Children (AWOC) would like the Government to commit to including people ageing without children in their thinking by:

1. Taking the demographic changes of the UK into account and recognising that for many people family support is not an option

2. Investing in advocacy services to ensure older people without family have people to speak up for them.

Highlighting the importance for all adults to plan for later life Paul Goulden, Chair of AWOC (ageing without children) said: “We’ve been promised plans to tackle adult social care for years, and each promise has been followed by an excuse or a delay – and older people have been let down again. Tackling adult social care is important for anyone who is over 50, but vital those who are ageing without children. In the absence of any plan or yet another a White Paper, we at least want to see some concrete steps towards tackling the issues that blight the lives of so many older people and those ageing without children.”

Sue Lister MBE

AWOC York Coordinator