The New Old
Our Ageing Population
Like many Western societies, Australians are having less children and living longer. This means that the number of older people is continuing to rise. In June 2020, Australians over 65 years of age made up 16% of the population. By 2066 it is estimated that they will make up 21-23% of the population.1
However, the expectations of an aging population and the trajectory of aging has changed significantly over recent decades. The workforce participation of older people has doubled since 2001. In 2021 15% of people over the age of 65 were still engaged at work, this varied widely depending on location – 12% in major cities and 25% in very remote communities.1 The age for pension eligibility continues to rise and so does the cost of living. Many older people are not just staying in the workforce but returning to it, some for financial reasons and the need for connection amongst others reasons.1
We put more effort into helping folks reach old age than into helping them enjoy it.
– Frank A. Clark
The number of people in their 50s who own their own home in Australia dropped to 66% in 2016, down from 76% in 1981.2 Older people born overseas are less likely to own their own home than older people born in Australia.1 Older women are the fastest growing population at risk of homelessness.2 Contributing factors include domestic violence, long term relationships breaking down, financial difficulty and lack of superannuation funds.1 Only 5% of older Australians live in nursing homes or residential accommodation.3 While 51% of older Australians have a disability1 the onset of these disabilities are occurring later in life and people are living longer despite disability.1
Traditionally, people have been known to suffer from loneliness and social isolation as they age due to the death of spouses, close friends and illness or disability that reduces the capacity for and access to social activities. Many changes across the generations have led to couples having fewer children, delaying or avoiding marriage and increasing divorce rates1 2 this is increasingly leaving people without the informal support they would usually receive from children and spouses in their older age. In addition, it means less people are conforming to the grandparent role that is often expected of older people.
The Cost of Diversity
While life expectancy has improved for the population, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People are still living on average 7-14 years less than non-Indigenous people, statistics worsening for those living in remote areas.4 Intergenerational trauma and enduring discrimination contributes to the fact that First Nations people continue to suffer significant preventable diseases, chronic illness and substance abuse at higher rates than the wider community.
On Census night in 2016, 3% of Indigenous people over the age of 50 were homeless while 0.4% of non-Indigenous people over 65 reported the same. 1 in 3 First Nations people over the age of 50 experienced days without money for basic living expenses between 2018-2019.1
While male veterans are reporting similar rates of chronic illness to the general population, 27% of men over 65 who served in the Australian Defence Force are experiencing mental or behaviour conditions in comparison with 17% in the general population.1
Do not complain about growing older. It is a privilege denied to many.
– Mark Twain
1 in 3 older Australians were living in rural and remote communities in 2018.1 Generally, due to lack of access to services, higher rates of substance abuse and socioeconomic disadvantage, people living in rural and remote areas tend to have a lower life expectancy.1 Lack of services and their accessibility in remote areas is an issue evident across many sectors, making it more difficult for older people to age in their homes, surrounded by loved ones. A lack of residential care facilities means that people living in remote communities need to utilise what little home care and informal supports are available or are forced to move to a more urbanised area where residential services are available. This is especially distressing for First Nations people living in remote communities who are often required to leave country and community to access aged care services.
Data regarding the wellbeing of older people who identify as LGBTIQIA+ is limited. The number of older people reporting same-sex relationships is significantly less than in younger generations – this could be due to a lack of willingness to identify due to fear of discrimination.1 Supporting this concern, same-sex relationships have only been acknowledged in the Australian Census since 1996,5 followed by same-sex marriage being legalised in Australia in 2017. As of 2023, intersex, transgender, other gender diverse individuals and polyamorous relationships are still waiting for recognition in the Census.
In 2018, 37% of older Australians were born overseas. 20% of older Australians were born in countries that did not speak English and 6% did not speak English well.1
Aged Care and Support
In 2020, the average older Australian could wait between 7 and 34 months after application to receive the support package they required from My Aged Care providers. The Royal Commission into Aged Care commented that the system was “not well equipped to provide care that is non-discriminatory and appropriate for people’s identity and experience.” There was an added difficulty in finding services that were welcoming and inclusive of First Nations people, people from a culturally and linguistically diverse background, veterans, LGBTI identifying and people already homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.6
The Royal Commission into Aged Care also found Australia’s aged care sector to be “understaffed and the workforce is underpaid and undertrained.”6 No doubt this contributes to the statistics that 1 in 3 older people have experienced some form of substandard care – from missed medication through to physical abuse.6 Informal carers take on a large portion of supports for older people in Australia – the already understaffed aged care sector is reliant on the time and effort of informal carers. The people who care informally for an older person might be a family member, specifically children, or a friend or neighbour. As the generations are gradually becoming lonelier, more socially isolated, having less children and the older population grows, this is expected to put further stress on the care sector.
It is too early to determine the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on physical, mental and emotional wellbeing of older Australians, both living in community and residential facilities.
Ageing is just another word for living.
– Cindy Joseph
Ageing into the Future
Community Centres and Neighbourhood Houses aim to be places of belonging for people of all ages, abilities and cultural backgrounds. Their work is underpinned by community development theories and frameworks. Community development aims for a society where we can all look forward to aging, where we have a quality of life to match the quantity.
With proactive social justice campaigns, the building of community capacity and empowering individuals become active citizens, this can be a reality. To begin this process we need to address some of the barriers to positive ageing.