There are big differences in people’s experiences of ageing. One in five people of State Pension age lives in poverty, while the richest people of the same age continue to grow wealthier.
People in the wealthiest parts of the country live up to 18 years longer in good health than those in the poorest.
Finances, social connections and the quality of jobs have all worsened for the current set of over 50s compared to previous generations, with older people from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) backgrounds particularly disadvantaged: levels of income and home ownership in BAME groups are much lower than for their White counterparts and the health of some Minority Ethnic groups is equivalent to that of White people at least 20 years older.
We must urgently see change, or we will not just have millions of older people now and in the near future living in poverty, ill-health and poor housing; but prospects will worsen further for future generations as they age.
Read our ‘State of Ageing’ and ‘Boom and bust?’ reports to learn more about inequalities in ageing
