It’s official – there’s a real joy in having children around

Jenny Eclair revealed this week that she had been to the chiropractor four times since becoming a new grandmother, and a generation will have raised a smile in recognition. They might knacker elderly knees and use up energy reserves faster than a two-mile hike, but there are few relationships more joyful, more nourishing than those between the young and the old.

When asked what she treasured most about her bond with Arlo Jude, aged four months, Eclair, 62, was effusive: “The feeling of total adoration. And a new part-time job is on the cards as one of the army of women my age pushing buggies around, because no one can afford childcare, so I don’t need to pay for a gym membership.”

In the days since she spoke those words, a study from King’s College London has revealed that weekly hugs from grandchildren help to stave off loneliness in later life. Published in the journal Ageing and Mental Health, the research found that people who cared for grandchildren were far less likely to feel isolated than those who cared for a spouse.

Is that any real surprise? Not to any of us who have seen the utterly transfixing Channel 4 series Old People’s Home For 4 Year Olds, in which pre-school children bring their reckless, boundless joie de vivre to a retirement home.

As they came marching down the corridors in one memorable episode, arms swinging, singing If You’re Happy And You Know It, it was apparent the residents – even the hesitant and the downright grumpy – would eventually succumb to the relentless charm of these poppets primed for discovery, who encountered them without prejudice and invited them to play.

As an intergenerational experiment it was a success. It was also TV gold, throwing into sharp relief the importance and mutual benefit of bringing the generations together.

In Australia, a pilot was launched in 2019 to explore the real-life possibilities of rolling out a scheme that would see young and old meet once a week for three hours to take part in structured activities such as art or gardening.

A truly heartwarming idea – can we emulate it here? The odd chiropractor appointment surely matters nought when set against the glorious exuberance of hide and seek or the jolt of happiness as a soft, warm hand is thrust inside a wrinkled palm. When wisdom and wonder come together only good things can happen.