Ageing population sees an increase in over 65s

Scotland’s population is continuing to age with the proportion of people aged over 65 increasing, the latest data from the National Records of Scotland (NRS) has confirmed.

Almost one in five (19 per cent) of people in Scotland are aged 65 or over, compared with 16 per cent in 2007.

People aged under 16 made up 17 per cent of the population in the year leading up to mid-2017. Sixty-four per cent of the population were aged between 16 and 64.

Better medical care has increased life expectancy, but the fact that people are living longer puts pressure on public services and the care sector.

The increase in the population of older age groups has been much higher than younger age groups over the last 20 years.

The largest increase has been in the 75 and over age group (plus 31 per cent) whereas the population of children aged 0 to 15 has decreased the most (minus nine per cent).

In the last decade, the most significant change was in the 65-74 year old age group which increased by 23 per cent over the past decade. In contrast, there were small decreases in all of the younger age groups. This reflects the ageing population and falling birth rate of the last ten years.

Rural areas tended to have a greater proportion of those aged over 65. For example, the percentage was 24 for the Scottish Borders while over 65s made up 25 per cent of the population in the Western Isles, Dumfries and Galloway and Argyll and Bute

The highest proportion of population aged 16-64 was found in the Glasgow City (71 per cent), City of Edinburgh (70 per cent) and Aberdeen City (69 per cent). These areas also have the lowest proportion of population aged 65 and over.