Full of praise for service helping elderly
A Bath-based charity has been praised by local older residents who use their services to stay in their own homes and maintain an independent life.
Age UK B&NES, which offers information, advice and support to local elderly people in the area received positive feedback on the services it offers through a recent survey.
The elderly people, who took part in the survey, commented on how helpful the charity was and how happy they were with the support they received.
The survey also revealed concerns older people in Bath and North East Somerset have, which focused mainly on issues with health including mobility, loss of fitness and becoming housebound, with one service user commenting that they wanted to ‘stay independent.’
Age UK B&NES offers lots of services to help older people and their carers in Bath and North East Somerset including support with information and advice, befriending services, dementia support and social opportunities through day services and lunch clubs.
The charity also works closely to support older people to remain living independently for as long as possible.
The services provided by Age UK B&NES are becoming more important as the older population continues to grow with a recent report by Public Health England revealing the number of people over the age of 85 has tripled since the 1970s.
In 2017, there were 1.35million people aged 85 and over in England and figures show there is the potential it could exceed two million by 2031.
Nicola Gregson, chair of Age UK B&NES, said: “The latest figures from Public Health England show that our ageing population is continuing to grow, with a large proportion of the older population affected by dementia in their lifetime.
“This highlights the need for important services for this demographic and the significance of funding for this sector.
“At Age UK B&NES we are proud of the services we offer older people living in the area.
“Our recent survey has given real insight into the local needs and we will continue to adapt our offer to make sure our services are appropriate.
“As a local, independent charity, Age UK B&NES relies on the support of fundraising and kind donations from the public to fund vital services.”
To meet the increasing demand for its services, the local charity is appealing for more volunteers to support day centres and become ‘befrienders’ in the community.
To find out more about the work and services that Age UK B&NES offer, visit their website at www. ageuk.org.uk/bathandnortheastsomerset/