Age Friendly draft Strategy & Action Plan p5
5. Baseline Report Summary
The Age Friendly Strategy has been informed by robust consultation which has involved older people organisations with an Age Friendly remit and/or working with older people and MEABC officers.
It included a survey (circulated in electronic and hard copy) to older people across the borough in addition to stakeholder organisations and groups across June - August 2022.
The survey was an opportunity to identify key issues facing older people and how best actions can be developed and delivered to address these and engage those most in need.
It is noted that during the consultation timeframe concerns in relation to cost of living were growing.
The consultation informed the development of a baseline report which accompanies this strategy and action plan; key findings for each WHO Age Friendly domain are summarised below and further developed in the baseline report.
Outdoor Spaces and Buildings
In general respondents reported feeling safe about leaving their homes and spending time in outdoor parks and open spaces while public buildings and their staff were viewed positively, in terms of both helpfulness and accessibility.
Consultation informing this domain identified accessibility and safety issues to be addressed, such as cars parking on pavements and pavements in need of maintenance.
While it was considered that there are good levels of accessible outdoor places in the Borough, these could be improved through increased provision of accessible toilets and seated outdoor areas.
Additional actions can include accessibility audits/walks combined with resources such as the Flush App (online toilet finder tool) with results mapped online for residents and visitors to assist in planning journeys and activities.
Areas for action also included addressing a lack of disabled spaces for parking, while concern was also expressed about levels of anti-social behaviour in public areas which can prove intimidating for older people.
Transport
Access to services by rural communities as a priority was highlighted, particularly by stakeholder consultation.
Aligned to this, survey responses found that more information on Community Transport would be welcomed while also expressing the view that public transport links were poor outside of the main towns in the Borough.
Scope for an initiative such as volunteer driver scheme was also put forward as an action to address transportation challenges among older people.
Housing
There is much good practice underway currently under this domain, with high levels reported for older people feeling safe both in the home and locality.
In addition, almost three quarters of respondents stated they have neighbours who can be contacted in an emergency. Accessibility in the home was reported to be very good among baseline respondents.
Actions under this domain should seek to build on support already available such as MEAAP’s Handyman scheme and MEABC’s Energy Efficiency advice service.
These services are still very much in demand, as reflected by consultation identifying that awareness raising is needed in relation to home maintenance or safety adaptions sources of support.
In addition, responses to the baseline found serious concerns among older people about heating their home and noted demand for advice on making the home more energy efficient, reflective of the current cost of living crisis.
Social Participation
Encouraging levels of community engagement and social participation were recorded across the Borough with strong support for participation opportunities such as luncheon clubs and Good Morning services.
This highlights the point that sustaining such services is key to social participation.
Consultation also found scope to develop more opportunities for older people to become more involved in community life.
This could take the form of Age Friendly Ambassadors or Champions, roles which enable the individual to commit what time they wish to the role and may compliment work already underway in this area.
Aligned to this, the need to address venue accessibility was noted, while other challenges to participation included not being aware of activities, timing of activities and mobility/health problems.
These demonstrate the need for service providers to view activity provision through an Age Friendly lens in order to ensure that older people have every opportunity for social participation.
Respect and Social Inclusion
Consultation found that promotion of inter-generational activities should be undertaken in pursuit of this domain objective, building on work already carried out through bodies such as Linking Generations and MEAAP.
This will enable greater value to be placed on the input/contribution of older people, portraying them in a positive light - an area in need of action as identified by baseline consultation.
This could include actions which provide greater opportunity for older people to share their skills and experience (also cited under Civic Participation and Employment) and could include roles outlined above such as Age Friendly Ambassadors or Champions.
Respect and social inclusion can be achieved through more proactive consultation by both public bodies and community and voluntary groups on the needs of older people, also identified as an area of action by feedback informing the baseline with respondents again stressing the importance of not relying on online communication and the value of in-person contact.
Council already undertakes annual pop-up events which have proved popular and provide a further opportunity to both raise awareness of council services and develop personal connections with beneficiaries, such as older people and their families.
Civic Participation and Employment
Scope under this theme exists to promote participation in civic activities and community connections, which can include a greater awareness of volunteering opportunities for older people and celebrating volunteers.
This is supported by the finding that older people are keen to share their skills and knowledge, opening up potential actions in this field of participation.
Increased engagement and consultation by public bodies with older people to hear their views was highlighted, with digital exclusion being considered a risk to older people - almost half of respondents were of the view that too many services and activities are online which can result in many not being aware of opportunities as a result.
In terms of sustaining the sector, there are concerns around succession planning for groups and attracting new members with many respondents stating that they would not like to join a local group/ Age Sector network to represent older people or become more involved in local groups and committees.
Communication and Information
The baseline survey found that almost one fifth of those responding do not use online services, highlighting the importance of ensuring ongoing accessibility for non-internet users to avoid the threat of digital exclusion.
The importance of non-online information sources, such as a “one stop shop” central information site/point where all relevant information could be co-ordinated was suggested as a consideration under this domain.
Given the strategy’s role in promoting an Age Friendly society and working practices, this accessibility should be taken into consideration in development of any Age Friendly communication strategy and action plan.
Ongoing work in relation to internet safety and support to address the threat of scams delivered by MEAAP (with Community Planning Partnership support) was considered to be very effective in the baseline report, highlighting the importance of continuing such work and recognising the potential of initiatives such as MEAAP’s “My Easy App” in building digital skills and confidence with scope to link with other providers, including Council.
Community Support and Health Services
Feedback in relation to issues such as healthy eating were encouraging; however, a lack of affordable health and fitness programmes/activities for older people was identified as an area for action to support greater participation in physical activity classes.
Concerns were also noted in relation to health and community service facilities not generally being considered to be fully accessible for older people.
Consultation informing the baseline identified scope to improve access to information on community and health services for health and wellbeing, including awareness of home care services in the Borough.
Work in this area should also recognise the role of MEAAP as an established age sector network and delivery body for the IMPACTAgewell community development integrated care project in addition to the Community Navigator project which includes a signposting service.
What Does This Tell Us?
The baseline report reflects many of the issues identified by the Commissioner for Older people in NI as priorities across Mid and East Antrim, highlighting the importance of partnership working and collaboration to share best practice from across the Borough and beyond.
In summary, the key findings identified from the baseline consultation and strategy development process can be summarised as follows:
- It is recognised that there is much good practice already underway across the borough which should be supported and enhanced, avoiding duplication of energy and resources
- Succession planning will need to be addressed in order to support Age Friendly groups and sustain the sector
- Ensuring access and participation by older people in rural communities is key in building an Age Friendly society in Mid and East Antrim
- Transport and access to services impacts many of the identified issues, in particular health and community services
- More robust and meaningful consultation with older people is required to inform both policy and project development
- Older people have much to offer society and are willing to share their skills and experience; these contributions should be recognised and encouraged, including through inter-generational work
- Many issues identified are cross cutting in nature, impacting on several thematic areas and, therefore, requiring input from a range of sectoral partners – Community Planning can be a conduit for this work.