Ageing and Social Cohesion Programme

Transcription

1 Ageing and Socia Cohesion Programme Lessons earnt and consutation on future work

2 Caouste Gubenkian Foundation (UK Branch) 50 Hoxton Square London N1 6PB UK T: +44 (0) E: W: Caouste Gubenkian Foundation (Gubenkian Human Deveopment Programme) Av. de Berna, 45 A PT Lisbon Portuga T: E: pdgh@gubenkian.pt W:

3 AGEING AND SOCIAL COHESION PROGRAMME 1 AGEING AND SOCIAL COHESION PROGRAMME Lessons earnt and consutation on future work SUMMARY This briefing reviews four years of operation of the Caouste Gubenkian Foundation s Ageing and Socia Cohesion Programme. The programme was designed as a response to demographic change and expores socia connectedness and the strength of com - munities in the UK and Portuga in the context of a rapidy ageing popuation. This document provides information about how the programme was deveoped and deivered and its ethos. It highights emerging earning, on the basis of which it makes some initia suggestions about how funds might be aocated in the future if the Foundation decides to continue addressing this set of issues. It marks the start of a consutation in which you are invited to participate.

4 2 AGEING AND SOCIAL COHESION PROGRAMME INTRODUCTION The Caouste Gubenkian Foundation is a charitabe foundation estabished in Portuga in 1956 with cutura, educationa socia and scientific interests. With its headquarters in Portuga and branches in the UK and Paris the Foundation is we positioned to address transnationa issues and earn from the exchange of ideas and good practice across borders. This briefing ooks back over four years of the Caouste Gubenkian Foundation s Ageing and Socia Cohesion Programme an initiative which has operated in both the UK and Portuga. In the context of a rapidy ageing popuation, the main objective of the programme has been to: create stronger, more mutuay supportive communities, in which oder peope are vaued and enabed both to engage and contribute to their fu potentia. Since 2008, 2.5 miion has been awarded to some 70 initiatives in both the United Kingdom and Portuga to achieve this objective. In addition to these grants, and perhaps of equa importance, the Foundation has made connections, brokered reation - ships and deveoped partnerships to support funded work. The Foundation is considering buiding on this work and wi deveop its poicy and practice based on discussion with partners and other experts. This briefing is designed to be a stimuus to such diaogue: Section 1 provides information about the programme and gives an insight into how and why it was deveoped. Section 2 summarises emergent earning organised around key issues and approaches. Section 3 makes some outine proposas about possibe future work on this theme. Case studies of funded work are provided on pages The Foundation woud wecome feedback on the issues and approaches described, as we as on the outine proposas for possibe future work.

5 AGEING AND SOCIAL COHESION PROGRAMME 3 SECTION 1 ABOUT THE PROGRAMME The programme was framed with the intention of addressing the quaity of socia connections between individuas, and the strength of communities, in the context of a rapidy ageing popuation. Within the European Union approximatey 17.8% of the tota popuation is now aged 65 or over. In 2010, the median age was 40.9 years and is estimated to rise to 47.6 years by 2060 (Eurostat 2012). This change wi have an enormous impact and innovation wi be necessary to ensure that our societies remain sociay, as we as economicay, productive. Innovation is needed to ensure that oder peope: have opportunities to remain engaged in their communities and, more widey, in society; retain and deveop the socia connections crucia to securing physica and psycho - ogica we-being; receive the support and/or care they need to engage and contribute to their fu potentia. There are two imperatives: to secure a better quaity of ife for oder peope, and in the context of shrinking pubic sector investment and potentia increased demand for services to foster stronger communities, better equipped to care for and vaue oder peope and the skis, experience and wisdom they can contribute. DEVELOPING THE PROGRAMME The Foundation conducted an exporatory phase, commissioning research in the UK and Portuga to assess current provision and identify gaps. This eary research high - ighted three distinct, but interreated issues, with a particuar infuence on oder peope s quaity of ife and roe in society: isoation, intergenerationa connections and dementia (Counse and Care 2006). An interactive scoping phase foowed. This incuded commissioning studies covering each of the three areas as we as a po on perceptions about intergenerationa reationships and hosting expert seminars for academics, practitioners, and other stakehoders (Caouste Gubenkian Foundation 2008). It was decided that interventions in Portuga might best focus on dementia, whereas interventions in the UK shoud concentrate on isoation. Intergenerationa connections was identi - fied as an area where a transnationa approach woud be of particuar vaue.

6 4 AGEING AND SOCIAL COHESION PROGRAMME INTERVENTION STRANDS Isoation and oneiness One of the findings from the scoping phase was that socia isoation and the oneiness in oder age which often accompanies it is a key issue that is argey overooked. Transitions incuding retirement, bereave - ment and oss of mobiity or sensory impairment affect oder peope s abiity to maintain and deveop socia connections in ater ife with the resut that 10% of oder peope report feeing oney most or a of the time (Age UK Oxfordshire 2011). The impact of oneiness on physica and menta heath is we documented. For exampe, its impact on heath is as great as smoking (Hot- Lunstad, Smith and Layton 2010). The fast pace of technoogica deveopment aso means that oder peope in particuar require support in order to remain connected (Independent Age 2010). At a seminar hosted by the Foundation in October 2008, a range of organisations working with oder peope, incuding socia sector and statutory representatives from housing, heath and other services, began to discuss this agenda and possibe areas for coaboration. The consensus was that a coaition which brought together some of the key payers in the UK with the power to infuence outcomes for oney oder peope and to identify best practice in reducing oneiness in oder age woud provide the best response. The Foundation took this forward by funding the Campaign to End Loneiness (see case study 1). More recenty, the Foundation has aso funded the Shaftesbury Partnership to undertake research on ife transitions, ed by Lord Wei, in order to understand better how oneiness and other chaenges in oder age might be overcome. This research (Wei and Hume 2012) coud potentiay ead to the pioting in the UK of a Nationa Retirement Service modeed on the government s Nationa Citizen s Service. Intergenerationa connections Reativey itte is known about the efficacy of intergenerationa work despite the fact that good reations between generations are generay acknowedged as important both for famiies and communities. The scoping phase indicated a need to understand and document practice; without this, support woud remain patchy and ineffective. Therefore, the focus of this funding strand became to share and strengthen best practice, test and capture earning from a range of piots in the UK and Portuga and spread intergenerationa practice. More recenty, the Foundation has been exporing how to take this practica knowedge forward through the pioting of sharedspace initiatives. IntergenerationA, a coaboration between the UK Branch and the Gubenkian Human Deveopment Programme in Lisbon, pioted new approaches to intergenerationa activity by triaing work in a range of settings, in - voving a variety of age groups and focused on specific issues (such as oneiness and isoation). Based on a major scoping study by the Oxford Institute of Ageing (Harper and Hambin 2009) the intention of IntergenerationA was to create a cear picture of initiatives that ead to sustainabe, engaging cross-generationa reationships that strengthen communities by producing a user-based assessment of the vaue of a range of intergenerationa schemes (see case study 2). The programme was evauated by OIA. Other projects funded under this strand incude a major transnationa research project on grandparents in Europe by

7 AGEING AND SOCIAL COHESION PROGRAMME 5 Grandparents Pus; a series of design awards caed Action for Age ed by the RSA in the UK and ExperimentaDesign in Portuga for students designing products or services for oder peope or that fostered intergenerationa connections; a scheme to support oder socia entrepreneurs run in the UK by UnLtd (see case studies 3, 4 and 5); and the estabishment of a European Map of Intergenerationa Learning (EMIL), a network which has buit an invauabe repository and aboratory for inter gener - ationa practitioners across Europe. Dementia According to OECD Indicators (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Deveopment), there are an estimated 14 miion peope aged 60 years and over suffering from dementia in OECD countries, which is more than 5% of the popuation in that age group (OECD 2011). An expert seminar hosted by the Foundation in Juy 2008 discussed and agreed that a broader approach to this issue was necessary, i.e. one that takes into account the heath, economic and, cruciay, socia impacts of this iness on patients and their carers, rather than just the biomedica aspects. The carers of peope with dementia often take on a fu-time, highy speciaised roe which requires expert knowedge, great ski and a positive attitude. Often they receive itte training or support resuting in significant stress. Knowedge of how best to support individuas with dementia and their famiies is improving and appropriate provision needs to be made. For exampe, psycho-socia interventions are considered particuary effective in increasing knowedge, mitigating depression and increasing we-being (Caouste Gubenkian Foundation 2008). Negative perceptions of peope with dementia can reinforce and exacerbate the oneiness, isoation and genera ack of we-being fet by those with the condition and their carers. In Portuga, the Foundation has been exporing how neighbourhood networks, such as São Nicoau and Nossa Senhora de Fátima in Lisbon, can work to counter these negative perceptions, thereby maximising the contribution that oca peope and organisations can make to tacking the issue. The Gubenkian Human Deveopment Programme in Lisbon has supported various initiatives. Caring for the Caregiver is a project that offers support to forma and informa carers of dementia patients with the aim of enabing oder peope to stay in their homes (see case study 6). It is now being enhanced and expanded through another initiative, Caring +. A further project, profamiies-dementia, provides psycho-educationa support, among other kinds of assistance, to chronicay i dementia patients and their famiies, heping them to adjust to the iness. DELIVERING THE PROGRAMME Between 2008 and 2012 the Foundation has worked on these three strands: isoation, intergenerationa connections and dementia using a variety of techniques. It has, for exampe: pioted soutions in oca communities; commissioned significant pieces of research to inform poicy and practice; estabished a campaign; promoted the showcasing and sharing of good practice.

8 6 AGEING AND SOCIAL COHESION PROGRAMME Its work across programme strands has a number of characteristics: a commitment to strengthening community and vountary organisations that work with and for oder peope as opposed to soey funding work with a direct impact on oder peope s ives; an emphasis on promoting and embed - ding new approaches by supporting partnerships between diverse organ - isations and individuas (for exampe, service providers and design professionas); the promotion of, and support for, an incusive approach, i.e. one that fuy invoves participants in the design and deivery of projects; invoving experts and the wider community of practice in programme deveopment through, for exampe, advisory groups; support for a number of strategic projects. These strategic projects incude two overarching pieces of research in the UK by the Institute for Pubic Poicy Research (IPPR) and the Centre for Socia Justice (CSJ). The resuting reports, Getting On: We-being in ater ife (McCormick et a. 2009) and Age of Opportunity: Transforming the ives of oder peope in poverty (CSJ 2011), both produced vauabe poicy and practice recommend - ations. Whie, in Portuga, the Foundation has supported the creation of the Institute of Ageing, in partnership with the University of Lisbon, to conduct research and organise training and events to promote greater understanding of oder peope and the issues which affect them. Additionay, the Foundation funded the Socia Innovation Exchange (SIX) network to run a workshop at the Foundation s offices in Paris which brought together a range of mutidiscipinary participants to consider what opportunities for innovation are presented by an ageing society and to exchange ideas. Funding in this area aso refects a number of cross-cutting approaches which mirror the Foundation s genera ethos and approach: coaboration; contribution; codesign; community and communications technoogy. These are discussed in more detai in the next section.

9 AGEING AND SOCIAL COHESION PROGRAMME 7 SECTION 2 CROSS-CUTTING APPROACHES COLLABORATION The issues the Ageing and Socia Cohesion Programme seeks to address are highy compex. The probem of oneiness in oder age, for exampe, is infuenced by a number of factors. Athough the dynamics are different for each individua, poor transport inks, bereavement, strained or distanced reationships with famiy members and poor heath may, aong with other factors, contribute (Age UK Oxfordshire 2011). A number of different organisations potentiay have an important roe to pay in addressing or aeviating oneiness and isoation in oder age. In the UK, to support the deveop - ment of more effective, concerted soutions the Foundation decided to bring together the key payers in a coaition, offering staff time, office space and funding to a group which became the Campaign to End Loneiness (see case study 1). Simiary, the issues surrounding dementia are aso compex, requiring coaboration between heath and socia care practitioners. In Portuga, the Foundation supported a project entited Caring for the Caregiver, which is a good exampe of the benefits of such partnerships (see case study 6). In a cimate of austerity and reduced pubic spending, making the best use of a avaiabe resources takes on a new signifi - cance. Mobiising private sector resources such as buidings and expertise has an important part to pay. However, different mind-sets and ways of working often obstruct partnerships between private sector and vountary and pubic sector organisations. In the UK, the Foundation funded Demos to expore the potentia of such partnerships and to investigate how some of the barriers to coaboration coud be overcome. The resuting report, Ageing Sociaby (Bazagette, Cheetham and Grist 2012), contains a ist of recommendations for businesses, vountary organisations and oca and nationa government. Additionay, in 2012, the Foundation participated in a workshop ed by the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Deveopment) on anticipating the needs of the 21st century siver economy, where the Foundation ed a discussion around the roe of pubic-private partnerships and the new forms of socia entrepreneurship that are emerging to address and anticipate the needs of ageing societies. A major concusion from the work - shop was that there is a need to strengthen such partnerships and to promote coabor - ation among mutipe actors.

10 8 AGEING AND SOCIAL COHESION PROGRAMME The practica benefits of coaboration in service deivery have been demonstrated in the IntergenerationA programme (see case study 2). Notaby, some of the most successfu projects were those which estabished strong partnerships. Projects which effectivey invoved a range of community-based organisations, incuding schoos, care homes and youth groups, had greater credibiity and cruciay were more capabe of sustaining their work beyond the period of funding. However, there can be substantia difficuties in deveoping strong, sustainabe partnerships not east time and resources which mustn t be overooked. This important esson about the vaue of partnerships was reinforced in the UK by the Centre for Socia Justice s major poicy report Age of Opportunity: Transforming the ives of oder peope in poverty (CSJ 2011), funded by the Foundation and pubished as part of the think-tank s Breakthrough Britain series. CSJ highighted the importance of dynamic partnerships between statutory agencies the poice, fire services, district nurses, socia workers, GPs etc. and vountary and community organisations. Not east because such partnerships enabe effective outreach to the oneiest and most isoated. The Foundation has since funded a foow-up conference, co-hosted by CSJ and the Campaign to End Loneiness, which brought together a range of poicy-makers and practitioners to further discuss these vita connections. Emerging concusions Coaborations and partnerships, whie they take resources to deveop and maintain, can resut in a more effective and targeted use of resources in the onger term. Funders and commissioners can act as effective brokers in bringing organisations with common concerns together to cast a spotight on a particuar issue, enabing them to combine their skis and resources to address them more effectivey. It is important for organisations seeking to act as brokers to recognise both the vaue of coaborations and the particuar factors time, space, and fexibiity required to make these work. CONTRIBUTION Oder peope are often regarded as a homogenous group and negativey stereotyped as passive recipients of care and support. However, the reaity is very different. Oder peope have diverse interests, needs and opinions and many, perhaps the majority, are engaged in supporting others in their famiies or communities, or woud be wiing to do so. Many oder peope, for exampe, make a major socia and economic contribution by ooking after grandchidren; often as a response to difficuties in the famiies such as heath, drug or acoho probems. A major transnationa study undertaken by Grandparents Pus with the support of the Foundation (see case study 3) shows that the numbers of grandparents in kinship care roes has risen and that the UK has one of the highest proportions (41%) of working-

11 AGEING AND SOCIAL COHESION PROGRAMME 9 age grandparents in Europe (Gaser et a. 2010). Age UK estimates that grandparents provide a tota of at east 3.9 biion in chidcare per year in the UK an impressive figure. However, due to the informa nature of such arrangements, they are often invisibe to poicy-makers and practitioners. However, it is not ony the fit and active that seek to contribute. The Campaign to End Loneiness s baseine survey Listening to You (Campaign to End Loneiness and Charities Evauation Services 2011) found that a substantia proportion of oder peope interviewed (35%) wanted to do more to contribute to society and get invoved in their community. However, various obstaces stood in the way, incuding having a disabiity, ack of mobiity and being house - bound. More needs to be done to assist peope in overcoming such difficuties since being abe to hep others is ikey to hep aeviate their own persona chaenges, for exampe oneiness and isoation. To incentivise even greater participation there is aso a need to create attractive opportunities for continued contribution. The IntergenerationA programme provides evidence of this (see case study 2). The most successfu projects were those focused on bringing peope together around common, or compementary, interests and passions. This mode made for more enthusiastic participation and was more successfu in engaging and, cruciay, retaining vounteers. A proportion of oder peope are aso ooking for profitabe ways to continue to contribute by setting up their own businesses, some but not a providing services to other oder peope, a group that traditionay has been underserved. To this end, in the UK the Foundation has supported the Engage Programme run by UnLtd (see case study 5). It has aso funded the Schoo for Socia Entrepreneurs to support oder peope setting up socia enterprises. Emerging concusions It is very important for its own sake but especiay in the context of ageing popuations to break down the myth of oder age as a period of fraity and withdrawa. Any soution to the chaenges of demographic change which aims to be sustainabe must take an asset-based approach and buid on oder peope s desire and wiingness to contribute their expertise, skis and wisdom. Many oder peope remain fit and active and aready make a big contribution to society; those who are facing chaenges and require hep aso have a desire to hep others and an approach that enabes these peope to contribute coud have a positive impact on their own we-being as we as that of others. Both oder and younger peope need to be given attractive opportunities to engage. In the case of intergenerationa practice, in particuar, the most success - fu projects were those based on common interests and passions, to which both young and oder peope can make a vaued contribution. In fact the badge intergenerationa can be a barrier to success the most important thing is to provide a natura starting point for conversations and therefore reationships.

12 10 AGEING AND SOCIAL COHESION PROGRAMME CO-DESIGN Co-creation, of which co-design is ony the first step, activey invoves customers or beneficiaries in the creation of products, services or activities. The Foundation beieves that it creates projects which better meet needs and truy refect aspirations as opposed to simpy repicating traditiona service modes. The approach, which typicay devoves power from the project eader to the user, aso engenders an increased sense of ownership which can make the project more sustainabe. However, impementation invoves a step change in thinking and can be difficut without ampe time and support. In recognition of the vaue of embedding this approach, the Foundation decided to commission Thinkpubic the UK s eading service design agency and the Institute of Socia Entrepreneurship in Portuga to offer structured one-to-one support on co-design and prototyping to each project funded within the IntergenerationA programme (see case study 2). This support invoved visits to the seected projects, workshops on co-design and prototyping techniques, onine mentoring and a fina ceebratory event to exchange earning. The Foundation has aso championed co-design by funding the RSA s Action for Age project (see case study 4), which chaenged young designers to create service soutions for isoated oder peope. This initiative was subsequenty expanded to Portuga through a partnership with ExperimentaDesign, a Lisbon-based design biennae. In Portuga, students from 23 design schoos embraced the chaenge to deveop new products and services for oder peope based on intergenerationa practice. Of these, 12 student teams were supported to impement their designs within their communities, co-designing and producing their initiatives with oder and younger peope. Emerging concusions Projects based on co-design methodoogies are ikey to have a number of distinct benefits over other projects, for exampe because they: invove oca peope in deivering soutions, often providing them with training and or toos to support impementation; eave a egacy in the community and are therefore more sustainabe; devove power from the project ead to the participants, thereby generating a greater sense of ownership and creating products and services that truy refect needs and aspirations. COMMUNITY The deivery of intergenerationa projects within communities is greaty enhanced by the creation and maintenance of soid inks with community-based organisations such as schoos, ibraries, oder peope groups etc. (discussed further under coaboration). However, once a project has estabished these partnerships and become embedded within the community it can become a powerfu too for community deveopment. Athough more evidence is needed to underpin this, the indications from the Foundation s IntergenerationA projects are that intergenerationa practice can bring communities together and hep to ameiorate difficut socia probems. This

13 AGEING AND SOCIAL COHESION PROGRAMME 11 suggests that intergenerationa work is not ony nice to have but a vauabe too for creating engagement and a better quaity of ife within communities. A compeing exampe in the UK is the Historypin project created by We Are What We Do. This saw neary 2000 members of the community invoved in Pinning Reading s History, with interaction happening at various eves: within the famiy, at community eve between students and oder residents and within the intergenerationa vounteer group which ed the project. This core group reached out to other members of the community to motivate them to participate. The resut was a significant eve of participation and increased interest in community engagement (see case study 2). In Portuga, another intergenerationa project in north Lisbon, Atas Hortas, is increasing the sense of beonging in a community by inking urban farming organisations and supporting them to use appropriate pubic areas to deveop their work. Located in a new urban deveopment area of Lisbon, their main purpose was to use ground aocated to be a park as a oca farm, where oder inhabitants coud meet younger peope and newcomers to care for their aotments coectivey. Additionay, oder vounteers aso work with students at oca schoos, reusing negected schoo grounds as aotments, thereby fostering socia connections and cohesion in the community. Emerging concusions Intergenerationa work has the potentia to be a vauabe too or mechanism for sustainabe community deveopment, and can potentiay hep to ameiorate difficut socia probems, but we need to better understand its potentia and how best to depoy it. COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY The Foundation has funded a range of initiatives examining the issue of oder peope and access to and use of communi - cations technoogy. This is important because increasingy it defines the extent to which oder peope are fuy participating members of society with the same oppor - tunities to access a wide range of products and services at an affordabe price, pursue their interests, maintain their connections with famiy members, who may be dispersed geographicay, and sustain and deveop their network of friends and acquaintances. The Foundation s interest aso stems from the fact that technoogy is not fuy expoited to support oder peope and improve their quaity of ife. In the UK, the Foundation has funded Independent Age to undertake a major piece of research examining whether technoogy might provide a soution to oneiness and isoation amongst oder peope (Independent Age 2010). Their report highighted the importance of provision that refects oder peope s interests and responds to their needs. Whie often the assumption is that probems reated to technoogy wi be soved by the introduction of new kit, the research indicated that a greater impact woud be achieved if existing work both service and product-based was strengthened and

14 12 AGEING AND SOCIAL COHESION PROGRAMME inked up and if oder peope were provided with more sustained support in accessing and using communications technoogy. The Foundation has since concentrated on two piot initiatives in the UK: the repication of the Canadian persona socia network, Tyze (see case study 7), and Beetroot TV, a web-tv channe for oder peope. In Portuga, funding has been provided for a coaborative patform emii@ designed to increase and enhance oder peope s access to ICT (see case study 8), and the Domo Nostra Centre (centre in our home), which aims to connect oder peope with permanent or temporary mobiity difficuties through a speciaist assisted conference ca system. Emerging concusions Technoogy can hep to address socia isoation and oneiness amongst oder peope but there is a need to ink initiatives, improve coaboration and provide sustained community-based training and support. Affordabiity and appropriateness are cruciay important; often products are not geared towards oder peope s needs and aspirations and many never come to market because they are not affordabe. Product and service deveopment needs to be rooted in discussion with oder peope and a proper understanding of their wishes and requirements.

15 AGEING AND SOCIAL COHESION PROGRAMME 13 SECTION 3 CONSULTATION One point constanty reinforced by our partners is that a focus on age per se can ead to stereotyping which masks the variety and compexity of peope s needs and aspirations. It has aso tended to support a deficit-based mode, which fais to recognise the skis, experience and enthusiasm which peope at different ife stages have to offer and the support they may need to successfuy negotiate ife s transitions. The approach that we woud propose to champion in the future is an a-age approach to panning and service deivery for an ageing popuation. This woud refect our core vaues incusivity, respect, dignity, the importance of reation - ships and fairness for a. Question 1: Do you agree that this is the right starting point? Based on this approach we propose to buid on past and current projects by supporting a new series of interventions in the UK and Portuga. Question 2: Do you agree that we shoud buid on past and current work or do you consider that a more fundamenta rethink is required? POSSIBLE FUTURE INTERVENTIONS The ideas expored beow represent possibe new interventions. However, we maintain an interest in deveoping some of the most successfu initiatives we have funded and aso in engaging further with projects which have experienced chaenges. Intergenerationa connections shared spaces The Foundation commissioned the London Eary Years Foundation and the Beth Johnson Foundation to undertake initia research examining intergenerationa work and shared sites. The research chaenged the focus on shared sites or co-ocated services, proposing instead shared space and describing their attributes as incuding that peope from different generations are abe to enjoy reguar contact, both forma and informa, and that they are activey invoved in panning and running a activities. Buiding on the report s recommendations, the Foundation is considering a potentia piot exporing intergenerationa shared space, and key success factors, in three different settings, incuding one educationa setting and one environmenta setting.

16 14 AGEING AND SOCIAL COHESION PROGRAMME Exporing key ife transitions In 2012, the Foundation funded a research project ed by Lord Wei and deivered by the Shaftesbury Partnership. Based on anaysis of the Nationa Citizen Service (NCS) Youth Programme, which aunched in 2011, it expored the potentia for using this mode for other ife transitions. It proposed a Nationa Retirement Service, ed by retirees for retirees, with the support of their empoyers and the state, providing assistance in panning for the future, buiding sef-hep networks, and engendering trust across generations. It woud aim to improve the economic outcomes, heath, and we-being of individuas and their communities. The Foundation is exporing options for the pioting of such a service. Intergenerationa fairness Oder peope are often now accused by the media of damaging the economic prospects of younger generations. The myths, stereotypes and potentiay fauty assumptions that underpin this portraya coud reduce soidarity between the generations. There is an urgent need for a better informed pubic debate on the issue. Such a debate might be encouraged and supported by the Foundation. It might for exampe: estabish an intergenerationa commission of experts on younger and oder peope to expore the issue; commission research on informa transactions, financia and other, between younger and oder peope in famiies and communities; commission a po to better understand how younger and oder peope reay fee about the issue. Measuring the impact of intergenerationa work Athough there are many indications, and much anecdota evidence, that intergener - ationa work can hep ameiorate difficut socia probems, there is a ack of toos to effectivey measure and describe this impact. It is therefore proposed that the Foundation deveops, in coaboration with the intergenerationa community of practice and evauation and measurement experts, effective toos to measure impact at a community eve. The Foundation considers this woud be an important step in deveoping intergenerationa practice, potentiay heping to make the case for more significant and sustained investment. Question 3: Do you consider these are the right issues to focus on? Are we proposing to address them in the best way?

17 AGEING AND SOCIAL COHESION PROGRAMME 15 Case studies Case study 1 (UK initiative) CAMPAIGN TO END LONELINESS The Campaign to End Loneiness is a coaition of organisations and individuas working together through research, poicy and campaigning to combat oneiness in oder age in the UK. Its vision is for fewer peope to fee chronic oneiness in oder age and for more peope to maintain their connections through times of transition, for exampe, from work to retirement. It is ed by a coaition comprising Age UK Oxfordshire, Independent Age, Sense, Manchester City Counci and WRVS. It aso works coaborativey with a wide range of other organisations. The Campaign: has deveoped the knowedge base on oneiness and isoation amongst oder peope by organising research confer - ences, producing pubications and supporting a Research Hub which enabes researchers and practitioners to share information about reevant research; has produced a guide for oca authorities on how to combat oneiness amongst oder peope; has brought the charity and statutory sectors together to earn from each other, and from research, about tacking oneiness; has produced a tookit for heath and webeing boards in Engand and is currenty working intensivey with oca groups in six areas to raise their awareness of the probem and appropriate soutions, whie spreading this work across the rest of Engand through its 600 supporters and iaison with networks of oder peope s fora and oca charities. Case study 2 (Joint initiative) INTERGENERATIONALL IntergenerationA comprised a tota of 18 intergenerationa projects, 11 based in the UK and 7 in Portuga. The projects triaed different approaches to intergenerationa work, deivered in different settings, under a sma coection of themes (for exampe, oneiness and isoation) and with an emphasis on the use of communications technoogy. The programme had two distinctive characteristics: Prototyping projects were required to generate, deveop and test project ideas with members of the community they intended to serve. Thinkpubic, a socia design agency, was commissioned to guide and support projects with this aspect of their work, with a specific focus on how best to invove users in the design process. An emphasis on sustainabiity projects were charged with considering how they might make their work sustainabe or otherwise eave a egacy supporting the deivery of high quaity intergenerationa work. The Beth Johnson Foundation in the UK and the Socia Entrepreneurship Institute in Portuga were contracted to hep projects achieve this. Some exampes of IntergenerationA projects: Lambhi Stabes is a community faciity in an area of high unempoyment and community fragmentation. The IntergenerationA project brought peope together across the age range to deveop work on three themes: a community garden

18 16 AGEING AND SOCIAL COHESION PROGRAMME and oca food; art and heritage; and outdoor space and eisure. Loca vounteers and groups determined the themes and formed steering groups to work on each. The project was deveoped using a team chaenge method, teams of vounteers were invited to meet the chaenge by working and earning together. Lambhi Stabes sees this method as starting changes at a project eve that deveop a ife of their own, are adopted by the oca community and ead to a widespread change in the environment. Historypin is a project deveoped by the not-for-profit company, We Are What We Do, in partnership with Googe. It sets out to bring peope together, from different generations, cutures and backgrounds, to gather and share the history and cuture of their communities. Peope can add photos, videos, audio fies, stories and recoections to the Historypin website, incuding through iphone and Android apps, pinning them to a particuar point in pace and time. Historypin works with a range of organisations and individuas to encourage them to embed an intergenerationa approach into their existing work using this too. Partners in the funded project, such as Reading Museum and Magic Me, did this, recognising its vaue. We Are What We Do has generated a range of resources to support schoos and community organisations wishing to adopt the Historypin approach. TOCA is a community project deveoped in Intendente, a neighbourhood in the centre of Lisbon with a poor popuation from a variety of migrant backgrounds. In its first phase the project worked with three different age groups on arts activities. Next, a series of gatherings were organised to bring the different groups together. Finay, a the participants coaborated on an artistic work, using the ideas that emerged from the gatherings. TOCA has succeeded in strengthening the inks between oca organisations and engaging the popuation in community-based activities. Adeia Pedagógica is a community deveopment project ocated in Portea, a sma viage near Bragança, in the north of Portuga. The main purpose of the project was to promote the transfer of knowedge about cutura traditions and farming techniques from oder inhabitants to younger generations. A series of schoo visits to the viage were organised, where chidren met oder peope who were masters of traditiona techniques. As a resut, there is now greater recognition of the vaue of these od negected viages, which is a basis for a new sustainabe mode of deveop ment for such communities. Case study 3 (Joint initiative) GRANDPARENTS PLUS Grandparents Pus is a nationa charity that champions the vita roe of grandparents in chidren s ives especiay when they take on the caring roe in difficut famiy circumstances. The Foundation has provided funding to Grandparents Pus for the deveopment of the first in-depth study of the roe of grandparenting across a number of European states. The study, a partnership with the Beth Johnson Foundation and the Institute of Gerontoogy at King s Coege London, was conceived because reativey itte is known about the demography of grandparenting or how poicies in different European countries support different grandparenta roes. The interim report, pubished in June 2010, incudes a comprehensive iterature review

19 AGEING AND SOCIAL COHESION PROGRAMME 17 and a review of famiy poicies across ten EU states. It shows that grandparents are paying a major roe in famiy ife across Europe, that their invovement generay has a positive impact on chidren s ives but that intensive chidcare is associated with isoation and financia hardship. It aso shows how, in recognition of the contribution made by grandparents, poicy and practice in reation to grandparenting is deveoping across Europe. For exampe, in a number of EU states grandparents are entited to paid eave, transferabe parenta eave and can, in some circumstances, be paid for the care they provide. The arger research project wi be compete during the first haf of Its main objective is to examine how different poicy regimes reate to different eves and types of grand - parenta invovement in the foowing ten countries: Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Itay, the Netherands, Portuga, Romania, Spain and the UK. Case study 4 (Joint initiative) ACTION FOR AGE The RSA Student Design Awards have estabished a reputation for chaenging young designers to appy their skis to difficut socia issues. The 2008/09 Action for Age project set design students the chaenge of designing a service that coud hep to restore a sense of we-being to isoated oder peope and to do so by engaging them in the process of design. This project was a coaboration between the RSA, the Foundation and GaxoSmithKine. Six projects were shortisted from 70 appications and offered mentoring and provided with the opportunity to test out their proposas in stakehoder workshops before presenting them to a fina judging pane. Three projects won awards: two with a focus on deveoping intergenerationa connections and one which sought to enabe oder peope to make a greater contribution in their communities. One aim of the project was to expore the pace of service design and a user-centred approach in design education. The RSA concuded that there was a need for a debate about the pacement of product design and service design in the same sphere of study, and for wider teaching of the user-centred, interdiscipinary design approaches that many beieve ead to outcomes that are more incusive, more sustainabe and more meaningfu. In 2010/11 Action for Age 2 was run by the RSA in coaboration with ExperimentaDesign in Lisbon and with the support of the Foundation and the Santa Casa da Misericordia de Lisboa. The new brief was to encourage intergenerationa reationships in order to address the needs of oder peope vunerabe to oneiness and isoation. Twentythree design schoos and 220 students were activey invoved; 81 appications were received and 12 projects shortisted. These projects received one-to-one mentoring and participated in prototyping workshops and were pioted. A number focused on the transfer of skis, incuding cooking and traditiona craft skis, and wisdom from the oder to younger generations. The project, which brought together tutors from 22 different design schoos, is regarded as having had a profound impact on design education in Portuga; generating significant awareness of and interest in the contribution that designers can make to the deveopment of services and user-centred design practice.

20 18 AGEING AND SOCIAL COHESION PROGRAMME Case study 5 (UK initiative) ENGAGE The Engage programme was run by UnLtd and funded by the Foundation from Apri 2010 to March It supported 30 socia entrepreneurs to start and to scae up ventures which address issues arising from the ageing of the popuation. The programme was open to peope of a ages, but the over- 50s made up the majority of the cohort. The programme provided each participant with grant funding to cover the running costs of their venture, a deveopment manager to provide advice and support when needed, peer interaction through networking events and workshops and access to pro bono expertise matched with their needs. The programme evauation demonstrates that this support was vaued by a participants. Typicay the ventures deveoped as part of the programme provide ow-eve hep deivered in peope s homes or the oca community. They tacke socia, economic or heath issues which might not be regarded as acute or urgent by the pubic sector but which improve heath and quaity of ife. Providing appropriate responses to such issues has been identified as key to enabing oder peope to choose ifestyes they vaue, incuding iving in their own homes for onger. The impication is that socia entrepreneurship may have a roe to pay in identifying and fiing important gaps in ocay provided services. The fina evauation report on the prog - ramme concuded that it demonstrated that socia entrepreneurship can buid much needed capacity for supporting peope at the oca eve and aso has the potentia to bring systemic change to the age sector through innovation. Case study 6 (Portuga initiative) CARING FOR THE CAREGIVER Caring for the Caregiver is a piot project that began as part of a joint pan for service deveopment undertaken by five munici - paities ocated in the north of Portuga, in the Douro and Vouga regions. It identified dementia care as one important priority area. Recognising the increasing need for targeted and coordinated responses by both heath and socia care services not ony for patients but aso for their caregivers the project was deveoped to hep care givers manage their responsibiities and mitigate physica and emotiona stress. The project takes a community-based approach, mobiising heath professionas, caregivers, socia workers, vounteers and schoo students from across the different municipaities. It invoves a number of eements: psycho-educationa support groups for caregivers, cognitive stimuation sessions for patients, professiona training on dementia care, the invovement of oca networks of vounteers, respite care services and other initiatives, incuding discussion forums in five high schoos to increase the schoo community s awareness and invovement. Consideration is being given to extending the project to other chronic conditions and other geographic regions. Case study 7 (UK initiative) TYZE PERSONAL NETWORKS Shared Lives Pus, working with Midand Heart, has been funded to repicate in the UK the Tyze persona network mode deveoped in Canada. Shared Lives Pus is the UK network for famiy-based and sma-scae ways of supporting aduts. Its members incude Shared Lives carers and workers. Shared Lives carers support and incude aduts

21 AGEING AND SOCIAL COHESION PROGRAMME 19 with a wide range of support needs in their famiy and community ife. They hep peope to deveop friendships, roots in their community and independent iving skis. Midand Heart is a UK housing and care organisation which supports peope who need hep to ive independenty, enabing them to discover their own abiities. It regenerates communities as we as maintaining homes for more than 70,000 peope with maximum customer invovement. Tyze is an onine too for buiding a network of friends, famiy members and professionas to support vunerabe peope particuary during difficut periods of transition. Networks are created around specific individuas and are private and secure. A network coud, for exampe, centre on an oder person who has suffered a stroke, enabing his or her carers and a arger circe of famiy and friends to hep with his or her rehabiitation. The project is deveoping onine support networks for 200 oder peope and peope with disabiities. Each network wi engage up to 20 friends and carers who can use the network to share information and coordinate support for the person at its centre. Each network wi aso have posted to it reevant information provided by Shared Lives Pus and Midand Heart. Funding is covering staff training costs for Shared Lives and Midand Heart, Tyze fees for the networks and the costs of research and evauation. The main objective of the project is to evauate the benefits of deveoping such onine persona support networks in the UK and expore Tyze as a means of enabing peope to make pans for the future and to support the sef-management of care through persona budgets. Case study 8 (Portuga initiative) EMILI@ SANTA MARIA DA FEIRA SENIOR PORTAL Emii@ is an onine coaborative patform through which oder peope can remain sociay active and engaged. It provides a means of interacting with oder peope in the municipaity, promoting activities and contact between them, as we as buiding their capacity to use technoogy and digita services to improve their quaity of ife. The patform was created by Santa Maria da Feira oca counci in north Portuga in recognition of the fact that as digita services and products become ubiquitous there is an increasing need to provide oder peope with community-based training and support in their use. The patform is monitored and supported by two staff. A second patform Santa Maria da Feira socia network inks organisations which run initiatives for oder peope and access to communications technoogy. It has enabed the municipaity to coordinate activities and to encourage partnership working. The resut is that emii@ and its network of practitioners has become an invauabe forum for coaboration and a repository of knowedge about both the ocaity and opportunities for socia networking.

22 20 AGEING AND SOCIAL COHESION PROGRAMME References Age UK Oxfordshire Safeguarding the Convoy: A ca to action from the Campaign to End Loneiness. Abingdon: Age UK Oxfordshire. Bazagette, L., Cheetham, P., and Grist, M Ageing Sociaby. London: Demos. Caouste Gubenkian Foundation Dementia: Report on expert seminar hed in Juy London: Caouste Gubenkian Foundation. Caouste Gubenkian Foundation Intergenerationa Issues: Report on expert seminar hed in October London: Caouste Gubenkian Foundation. Caouste Gubenkian Foundation Isoation in Oder Age: Report on expert seminar hed in October London: Caouste Gubenkian Foundation. Campaign to End Loneiness and Charities Evauation Services Listening to You: The baseine report from the Campaign to End Loneiness. London. Centre for Socia Justice Age of Opportunity: Transforming the ives of oder peope in poverty. London: Centre for Socia Justice. Counse and Care Oder Peope and the UK s Ageing Society: Key themes for further discussion. Unpubished paper for the Caouste Gubenkian Foundation. Eurostat, European Commission Active Ageing and Soidarity between Generations: A statistica portrait of the European Union, 2012 Edition. Luxembourg: Pubications Office of the European Union. Gaser et a Grandparenting in Europe. London Harper S., and Hambin K Gubenkian Programme on Innovative Approaches in Intergenerationa Interaction and Learning. Unpubished report to the Caouste Gubenkian Foundation. Hot-Lunstad J., Smith, T.B., and Layton J.B Socia Reationships and Mortaity Risk: A Meta-anaytic Review. PLOS Medicine, 7(7), e Independent Age Oder Peope, Technoogy and Community. London: Independent Age. McCormick et a., Getting On: We-being in ater ife. London: IPPR. OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Deveopment) Heath at a Gance 2011: OECD Indicators. Paris: OECD Pubishing. Wei, N., and Hume, A Next Steps: Life transitions and retirement in the 21st century. London.