Reimagining Age-Friendly Living

Ideas Reimagining Age-Friendly Living

Ageing is inevitable. It is estimated that by 2050 there will be more than two billion people aged over 60, more than twice the number measured in 2000. One in six people in the world will be aged 65 years or over. This global phenomenon affects every country in the world, yet there are virtually no policies in place to cater for this shocking statistic. It’s more likely that we’ll hear about retirement housing being rejected on the grounds that it could harm the vitality of the town centre, as a recent high-profile case proved.

So while the concept of age-friendly isn’t new, it has yet to fully permeate into policy-making across the built environment. In the UK there is still no planning definition (or use class) for age-friendly homes and recent housing policy has been heavily weighted towards the construction of homes for families and young professionals. It’s little wonder that the shortfall of new accessible, age-friendly homes is estimated at 22,000 every year. While we all continue to debate how to improve supply, national and global demand for more and better age-friendly homes is surging.

These headline statistics mask the more important fact that individuals and their families can lose their independence, due to a lack of affordability or choice. Yes, retirement homes are being built, but many just simply aren’t affordable. Much purpose-built development has been based on the retirement village. This development model aims to maximise security and comfort for residents, but the scale and typology means that they are often located at the urban fringes, reinforcing a sense of segregation between older people and the wider community. Alongside this, the global pandemic has seen our older populations disproportionately affected and our high streets blindsided - when shoppers were already thin on the ground. It has magnified the interconnections between our housing and built environment, and shone an unforgiving light on social inequalities.

In our Reimagining Age-Friendly Living report we explore the potential for age-friendly residential development to help activate dormant underutilised sites in our high streets and towns, whilst expanding housing choice for this multifaceted demographic. We argue that a more radical approach to agefriendly living can help to unlock difficult sites and encourage more diversity within town and city centre residential populations. This model includes a number of design features not typically associated with older people’s housing: higher density modular development; generous private balconies; exploiting the roof level for gardens and residents’ social

spaces; opening up the ground floor as a shared community resource; and downgrading streets to introduce green space, improve walkability and reduce traffic noise.

Taking a global perspective, we joined up our UK thinking with our colleagues in Toronto and in Singapore. We haven’t fixated on what ageing is now but have considered what it will look like in the next two to three decades, across the globe. For example, statistics from the United Nations show that by 2030, 60% of the world’s older population will reside in Asia. Additionally, in the last year, the Covid-19 pandemic has created a seismic shift in the care and wellbeing of older generations in the region. This means responding to the aspirations of people currently in their sixties, many of whom will want a very different old age to that of their parents’ generation, but also considering cultural expectations, such as those rooted in filial piety in parts of East Asia.

And perhaps most importantly this is about opening a dialogue with developers, policy-makers and planners about what age-friendly development could look like and the role older can play in (re)activating the high street. We believe in creating multi-generational communities and mixed-use neighbourhoods - environments that allow people to grow older in a place that is well-connected to cultural, transport, healthcare and a range of other amenities, thus creating a better quality of life and revitalising urban centres.

In the words of Hemingway, “No one should be alone in their old age.”

Visit bdp.com to download the full report.

2

1

12 13

15

14

14

10

9 11

7 8

Key

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

Retail/Community Community Farming Multi-Generational Unit Viewing Deck Sky Terrace/Amenities Multi-Generational Playground Studio Bedroom Bathroom Balcony Living Room Kitchen Master Bedroom Master Bathroom Bedroom Bathroom