Ageing well
Wellbeing in older age means ensuring that older people can lead full and meaningful lives and participate in community life, whatever their stage of life or state of health.
The ageing of the population requires new approaches to retirement and older age, as well as ensuring that older people have access to high quality health and care services when needed. It means recognising the contributions that older people make to the community, enabling them to live as independently as possible, with dignity and autonomy and connected to those around them.
News
- The Benevolent Society's article, Housing for Older Australians: Affordable, Well-located and Suitable?, published in the June 2011 edition of Parity, highlights the growing demand for private rental properties in older age as Australia's population ages and rates of home ownership decline, and focuses on the importance of affordable and suitable housing contributing to well-being in later years.
- A roadmap for ageing well: Independence, connections and care sets out future directions for ageing well in Australia. It outlines how best to ensure that older people can remain independent, active and socially connected and that our systems of social support, housing and care of older people are up to the task.
- Ageing well in Australia: Time for a rethink is The Benevolent Society's submission in July 2010 to the Productivity Commission's Caring for Older Australians Inquiry. The Society also made a response to the Commission's draft report. Our response is supportive of the Commission's focus on the wellbeing of older Australians but highlights some issues needing further attention. One of the most important things to get right will be the information, education and assessment functions of any new system, that is, to make sure that older people and their families get high quality information and advice about the options available to them.
- The Benevolent Society's submission on the draft National Carer Strategy, December 2010.
Apartments for Life
- The Benevolent Society aims to influence the directions of housing and ageing policy in Australia through the development of a new model of housing, care and support. The Apartments for Life model offers older people a chance to remain in their own home and community throughout older age. But it is also about supporting older people’s control over their own lives and their continued participation in community life. Apartments for Life includes social and affordable housing so that residents will reflect the social and economic diversity of the local community. Read all about the Apartments for Life project.
More policy papers on ageing well
- Issues Paper: Ageing well explores the challenges and potential solutions relating to ageing well and the social inclusion of older people.
- A new model of housing, care and support for older people – a poster overview of the concepts behind Apartment for Life.
- Social isolation and older people – this presentation at a forum on social inclusion of older people, held in May 2009, looks at why social connections are important, possible impacts for older people who lack social connections, and ways to address this.
- See also Research to Practice Briefings for community aged care workers about key topics in community care.