The State of Ageing 2022 and Ageism

Our population is ageing rapidly, and the number of people at risk is growing at an alarming rate.

Across England today – depending on where we live and how well-off we are – there are differences of up to ten years in how long we can expect to live and more than 17 years in the time we get in good health without a disabling illness.

The latest data also shows a sharp increase in pensioner poverty, meaning that almost 1 in 5 people of pension age, are now living in poverty. The State of Ageing 2022 looks at data from a wide range of sources such as the English Housing Survey, the GP Patient survey, the Health Survey for England and the Community Life Survey, as well as a host of official statistics like the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Ultimately it shows that the experience of being older in England is getting considerably worse for many. The data demonstrates the huge challenges facing the government’s levelling up ambitions to reduce inequalities across England as well as its stated commitment to increase healthy life expectancy by five years. The Centre of Aging Better’s overall recommendation is that government appoints an Older People’s Commissioner for England to protect and promote the rights of older people and to help make England a better place to grow old in.

The Centre’s Niall Ryan highlights the consequences of ageism, and what we can do to tackle it in his latest Blog it makes a challenging read for all of us.

“My friends say I should act my age. What’s my age again? The iconic MTV reality comedy show Jackass shows no sign of slowing down, returning this year with a fourth film in its franchise. The film features a cast of characters carrying out dangerous stunts and pranks on each other. Its lead performer, Johnny Knoxville, is now 50. Perhaps this is simply a form of so-called male ‘arrested development’. Or maybe these individuals mark a change – a refusal to grow up and ‘act’ as society thinks they should, simply based on their age.

What is ageism? Ageism is when people are unfairly treated based on their age. It affects everyone. A-list Hollywood actor Maggie Gyllenhall was told at 37 she was ‘too old’ to play a role opposite a 55-year-old man – suffering from the all too common double whammy of sexism and ageism.

Ageism will impact us all at some point, particularly as we get older. And we don’t have to look across the pond to see glaring examples of it: it’s the most widespread form of discrimination here in the UK.

For example, eight years ago Newcastle manager Alan Pardew was forced to apologise for calling Manchester City’s manager, Manuel Pellegrini, something ageist, insulting and unpublishable. Pellegrini was 60 then. Pardew is 60 now. It turns out discrimination, like life, comes at you fast.

This highlights just how absurd ageist attitudes can be. Simply put, it’s a prejudice against our future selves. Age old problem Ageism is everywhere. From our workplaces, where as we get older we are treated as less able or given fewer opportunities for progression, to our healthcare system where older people are often described as ‘bed blockers’. Surely the real bed blockers are those in charge who failed to plan ahead. Think about it: we don’t call people who get Glastonbury tickets ‘gig blockers’. The demand simply outweighs the supply.

The media often portray older people as rich baby boomers, but age does not equal wealth and millions of people in their 60s, 70s and beyond are living in poverty. In fact, the Independent Press Standards Organisation doesn’t even set standards in regards to age discrimination, despite age being a protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010.

I’ve heard people refer to ageism as the last acceptable form of discrimination. I don’t agree. Unfortunately, racism, sexism and ableism are still all too acceptable in certain