Do people plan for their old age?
Published: 19 January 2018 at 08:53
Research to discover the ‘hows’ and ‘why nots’
Anglia Ruskin University has been commissioned by the Centre for Ageing Better to carry out research to better understand how people plan for older age.
The research review will examine how people over 40 prepare for life in their sixties and beyond, such as saving for a pension or moving house and what helps or hinders the process.
The study will also identify the common characteristics of people who plan for their older age and those who don’t.
Preparing for later life might involve saving for retirement, career planning and making a will, to adapting a home, planning for care, maintaining friendships and talking about death. But there are practical, financial and emotional barriers that get in the way of these plans. The Centre for Ageing Better hopes the research will identify what prevents people from being better prepared as well as identifying solutions to ease the planning process.
Luke Price, Evidence Officer at the Centre for Ageing Better said:
“We want everyone to enjoy a good later life, both now and for future generations. Planning and preparing is part of what makes it good but many of us aren’t thinking ahead and we need to know why. This research will give us some practical insights to help us prepare better and give us the best chance of a good older age.”
Dr Claire Preston, Research Fellow at Anglia Ruskin University said:
“Old age is often portrayed as a lottery but to some extent we can lay the foundations in middle age for a healthy and happy later life. This review will examine studies to find out what kind of preparations people can and are making. This will in turn allow the Centre for Ageing Better to encourage people to make changes and to lobby policy makers to help make the transition into later life easier for more people.”