This December at GM Ageing Hub we have been reflecting on what has been a challenging, but rewarding, year. We would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your support across 2021, and we look forward to working with you all in the new year. 

Next year the Ageing Hub will be helping to relaunch a campaign on Pension Credit uptake in Greater Manchester. According to research carried out by GMCA, 43,000 GM households are not claiming the Pension Credit they are entitled to, leading to £75m going unclaimed by low-income GM pensioners every year. Pension Credit is also a “passport” benefit, meaning that it unlocks further financial benefits including free TV licences for over 75s, housing benefit and council tax support, and money towards home insulation. Building on progress made in 2021 during the first phase of the campaign, we will be re-launching a new, broader, phase of the campaign. If you would like to get in touch with us about this campaign please send us an email.

Our Age-Friendly GM wider team will also continue to meet weekly in the new year. The wider team meeting is a space for practitioners, researchers and academics, alongside the ten locality leads and representation from the GM Older People’s Network, to share their knowledge and experience and help to deliver Age-Friendly Greater Manchester. Please get in touch if you would like to be a part of the conversation.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank Pam Smith, who has been our Chief Executive lead for Ageing and Equalities, for all her support on the ageing agenda. We wish her every success in her new role as Chief Executive of Newcastle City Council from January. We would also like to thank our political lead, Cllr Brenda Warrington, who has now taken on the Healthy Lives and Quality Care portfolio.

Thank you again for your continued support.

Greater Manchester Ageing Hub team

Wider issues of digital exclusion: report for the Mayor 

Thank you to everyone who got in touch with the Ageing Hub to share examples of wider digital and tech exclusion experienced by older people in Greater Manchester. On December 17 the report was taken to the Mayor at the Greater Manchester Digital Inclusion Action Network. Gillian Stainthorpe, member of the GM Older Peoples Network Steering Group and Chair of its Health and Social Care Working Group, gave a presentation to the Mayor on the huge negative impact of wider issues of digital exclusion on older people's day to day lives. 

The responses to our research showed that wider digital and tech exclusion is more extensive than many organisations were previously aware - going far beyond the digital exclusion which is typically believed to centre around the use of laptops, tablets and smart phones. We found that older residents in GM are struggling to use devices with digital displays around the home, even if they are not connected to the internet, such as heating systems and washing machines. One concerned cleaner shared that a local resident, aged 91, had been paying them to switch the resident's washing machine on because it was digital and she was frightened to use it. The same resident had been running her heating during a hot spell as she didn't know how to switch it off. Challenges around wider exclusion also extend into the community, with issues around using transport payment systems and self-service check outs in shops.

We found that this exclusion generates feelings of huge frustration, disempowerment, and fear for many older people. One woman we spoke to, aged 81, said her independence has been taken away from her due to digital instructions on everything. Now she must rely on others to help with tasks she was previously easily able to do herself. Ultimately, barriers to digital and technological participation were found to have a major impact on the day-to-day quality of life of many of our older residents.

Solutions to this issue are not easy to address, and will require further research. Some ideas that were raised during our explorations included changes to service commissioning to include provisions of one-to-one support in people's homes, and a code of conduct or Trusted Traders model for manufacturers and providers.

If you would like a copy of the final report please email Jo Garsden. 

Bernard from Salford's digital journey covered by ITV Granada News 

Last month ITV  Granada News did a feature on Salford's Bernard Whipbay. Bernard was a digitally excluded older person in Greater Manchester who was struggling with his mental health and did not 'have the tech know how to do anything'.

After being put in touch with Salford's Tech and Tea programme, a local course aimed at over 50s that teaches people how to get online safely and use technology, Bernard's confidence with digital technology changed drastically. Bernard now navigates the online world with ease, and has begun attending Tech and Tea as a volunteer mentor.

Watch the report 

Housing for people living with dementia: from policy to practice in Greater Manchester 

The Greater Manchester Health and Social Care Partnership and the University of Manchester have released their report into potential interventions that can be made in housing to improve the lives of people living with dementia. The report is part of an extensive period of consultation over the past 18 months, including more than 250 stakeholders across housing, health and social care in Greater Manchester, alongside people with lived experience of dementia, carers and loved ones.

Read the report 

Ethnic Minority Older People, Histories of Structural Racism and the COVID-19 Pandemic 

A new report from the University of Manchester and the Runnymede Trust outlines how older ethnic minority people are more at risk of exposure to the COVID-19 virus and to the social difficulties exacerbated by the pandemic due to longstanding inequalities in housing, health, employment and resources. These inequalities are (both historically and today) largely structural in nature.

Read the report 

Talking About My Generation news team nominated for Queen's Award for Voluntary Service 

The Talking About My Generation community reporter team strive to set 'set the record straight' on ageing by reporting on other people from their generation, charting their own life stories of over 50 and showing any challenges associated with ageing and how they are being overcome. There are reporters for all 10 boroughs in Greater Manchester, and by providing a prominent and forthright voice to older persons within each area on issues ranging from climate change to mental health, the team have produced amazing content for their local communities.  

In recognition of their incredible work, the team have been nominated for the Queen's Award for Voluntary Service. This is the highest award given to volunteer groups across the UK and winners get a certificate signed by the Queen and a domed glass crystal. Representatives from the group may also be invited to attend a royal garden to celebrate their achievements. 

Read more

Blog: Gorton Age Friendly Community Bench Walk 

Last month Buzz Manchester Health & Wellbeing Service and Acorn Housing launched 10 new Age Friendly benches in Gorton and Abbey Hey. 

Two years of development work went into the project to source funding and steer a collaborative approach to the design and installation of the new benches. The location of the benches were selected by local older people with the aim of creating a more accessible route around the Gorton and Abbey Hey area.

As Buzz Manchester outline, the benches will enable older residents and people with mobility barriers to travel comfortably and connect to community spaces, shops and health centres independently. The benches will also provide a space where social connections can form between individuals taking a seat.

Read more

Ethnic health inequalities in later life
Friday 14 January 11:00-12:00 

During this webinar the Universities of Sussex and Manchester will present the findings of their research into ethnic inequalities in health in later life – specifically, how they vary with age; whether levels of inequality have changed over time; and to what extent they can be explained by socioeconomic inequality and self-reported experiences of racism and racial discrimination. 

Book your place