Facing the challenges of ageing

By Grant Sherlock
BBC East

Older people will receive more help to stay in their own homes longer

The extent to which Norfolk relies on its volunteer carers has been laid bare with the release of figures showing the county as one of the UK's oldest in population terms.

A new study released by the BBC shows Norfolk has the second highest percentage of people of pensionable age or above.

At 23.8%, almost a quarter of people who live in the county fit into that category, placing it behind Cornwall as the second oldest in the UK population-wise.

It should come as no surprise then that Norfolk's average age is also enough to cause social services officials to go a little greyer themselves.

With an average age of 42.3, Norfolk has the second highest average age in the UK and that presents all kinds of problems for those planning for the county's future.

Living longer

James Bullion, assistant director of social services at Norfolk County Council, said: "It's likely that we're not at the peak of it yet. We do need to take action."

There are a range of reasons why the county finds itself faced with such a challenge.

For starters, the county is regarded as a healthy place to live and, as a result, people live longer.

Also, the BBC's Changing UK research shows that older people tend to move to the coast.

And then there is the fact that traditionally Norfolk has difficulty retaining its young people, who often leave the area to study and do not return until they are much older.

If Mick Jagger can still rock at 60 then the people of Norfolk are OK James Bullion, Norfolk County Council

Some action has already been taken but, according to pensioners, there is still a lot of work to be done.

Edith Pocock, secretary of Norfolk and Norwich Pensioners Association, said the county needed to provide more help for its older residents.

She said: "When I look around here what is done for old people is appalling. There's very few seats when you go out in the town, very few disabled places for cars.

"I can go days and not see a soul. My son is very good but he's at work. He rings me to see if I'm OK."

Stanley Todd, the group's treasurer, believes a lot of the burden falls to other pensioners.

"When people really get stuck somebody will run you into hospital," he said. "We want the wartime spirit back. Everybody looked after each other then. Now it's too much trouble."

As it looks to the future, Norfolk County Council is focussing on supporting its legion of carers who are now seen as the backbone of the system.

New retirees

Without them, the bill for caring for Norfolk's elderly would rocket.

Mr Bullion said: "We know there are large numbers of carers in Norfolk's population that go unrecognised. For every 1% reduction in carers in Norfolk it would add £2.5m to Norfolk's budget."

Norfolk County Council wants to make better use of newly retired people who want to use their free time to help others.

"...People in their 60s working with older people in their 80s is part of the solution," Mr Bullion said. "We have to create the environment where they can do that."

So in the future more help will be at hand to make it easier for people to volunteer.

"One of the big things we are trying to do is not to treat this as a demographic time-bomb issue," Mr Bullion said. "Fifty is the new 30. If Mick Jagger can still rock at 60 then the people of Norfolk are OK."