How many pensioners are there in the UK?

It is estimated that there are currently 11.7 million pensioners in the UK.[1] Of these 4.7 million are aged over 75. As the population ages, the number in the oldest age bands will increase the fastest. In 2016, it is estimated that 5.5 million people will be over 75 rising to 8.2 million by 2031.[2] 

How fast is the population ageing and is this changing over time?

In 2005, around one is six of the population was over 65, compared to one in ten in 1950. It is estimated that in 20 years time, this will rise to one on four.[3]

How many pensioners are there likely to be by 2010?

The number of people of state pensionable age is projected to increase from 11.3 million in 2006 to 12.2 million in 2010.[4]

How many over 85-year-olds will there be in the future?

The population aged over 85 is projected to nearly double in the next 25 years, with steady annual growth of 2 – 3% in that period.[5]  It is projected that by 2011, there will be over 10.4 million people over the age of 65, by 2026 – over 14.2 million and by 2031 – over 15.7 million.[6]

How do over 65-year-olds feel about their quality of life?

In 2007, 28% of those aged 65 or over feel that their quality of life has worsened over the last year. 7% feel that their quality of life has improved.[7] In 2006, 45% of our beneficiaries indicated that their quality of life had worsened over the last year, and 41% indicated that it had improved.[8]

Do people feel that older people are discriminated against?

73% of adults in Great Britain agree that age discrimination exists in the everyday lives of older people.[9]

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Finance and poverty

How many older people are living in poverty?

1.8 million pensioners live in poverty, which equates to 17% of all pensioners.[10]

What proportion of older people receives a full state pension?

Of those reaching state retirement age, about 85% of men and 30% of women receive a full state pension.[11]

Do older people face fuel poverty (where a household cannot afford to heat their home)?

Over half of all households living in fuel poverty (where a household cannot afford to heat their home) contain a member of 60 years or over.[12] The average fuel bill has risen from £572 in 2003, when the payments system was established, to £924 today.[13]

Do older people try to save money on fuel costs?

20% of older people in the UK avoid heating rooms because they are worried about cost.[14]

Do more older people die in winter?

In the winter period of 2006/07 there were 23,900 more deaths in England and Wales than the average for the non-winter months, of which 22,300 were deaths of older people aged 65 and over.[15]

What is the proportion of spending on household costs compared to energy prices?

Spending on housing, fuel and power has risen by 10% but energy prices are up by 30% for the same period.[16]

How many of the older people that Independent Age supports own their own homes in comparison to pensioners as a whole?

Nationally, around two-thirds of pensioners own their homes[17], compared to 38% of Independent Age of beneficiaries who own their homes.

What is the average weekly income after retirement?

The average weekly disposable income for a single pensioner relying on state pension is £138.[18]

Do people, and in particular older people, claim all their benefits?

It is estimated that 31-40% of pensioners in private households, entitled to Pension Credit did not claim it.[19] An estimated 11-16% of pensioner households entitled to Housing Benefit did not claim it, rising to 40-46% for Council Tax Benefit.[20]

How much do older people lose in unclaimed benefits?

Pensioners could be losing between £5,000 and £50,000 over their lifetime in unclaimed benefit.[21]

Are older people means tested?

In 2004, 30% of pensioners were subjected to means-testing for the purpose of determining benefit entitlement. This was a rise from 27% in both 2002 and 2003, but a fall from 37% in 1993 when records are first available.[22]

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Health and social care

Is depression an issue for older people?

Around 25% of people over 65 living in the community have symptoms of depression which warrant intervention. Around half of these (10-15%) meet the criteria for a clinical diagnosis of depression.[23]

How does longstanding physical illness affect older people?

Among people aged 65 and over, 71% reported longstanding illness. 42% of men and 46% of women reported that their illness limited their activities in some way. The two most commonly reported types of longstanding illness among both men and women were those of the musculoskeletal system and heart and circulatory system.[24]

Which physical illnesses affect the older population and Independent Age beneficiaries?

In the 2007 Independent Age beneficiary survey, 73% of respondents indicated that they had a long term health issue that affected their quality of life of which:

65%: arthritis, rheumatism, osteoporosis

59%: difficulty walking

47%: heart problems/high blood pressure

43%: back or neck problems

20%: depression or anxiety

Which long-term conditions affect older people?

In 2005, for men over 65, cardiovascular disease is the most commonly reported chronic disease, and for women, arthritis.[25]

How many older people suffer from dementia?

1 in 5 people over 80 and 1 in 20 people over 65 has a form of dementia. The most common form of dementia is Alzheimer’s disease. The Alzheimer’s Society estimates that there are currently 683,597 people in the UK with dementia, of which only 15,034 are aged under 65.[26]

What is the life expectancy of for those 65 and above?

The life expectancy of a man aged 65 is 16.4 years, and for a woman 19.3 years. Of those, for a man 4.1 years will be in poor health and a woman 5 years.[27]

Does social class influence life expectancy?

Life expectancy for those in professional occupations (social class I) higher than those in manual unskilled occupations (social class V). For men in social class I, life expectancy is 80.0 years, compared to 72.7 years for men in social class V. Women in social class I can expect to live for 85.1 years compared to 78.1 years for those in social class V.[28]

How fit are older people?

Keeping physically active is a key way of maintaining independence. But only 16% of 55-64 year olds, 11.9% of 65-74 year olds, 6% of 75-84 year olds and 2.2% of those aged 85 and over take regular exercise[29].

How much is spent on social care per year?

Expenditure on home care rose by 7% in real terms in 2004-5, to £1.7 billion. However, the proportion of social care budgets that are spent on residential services and home care services have remained constant for several years.[30] In 2006, 81,535 households in England are receiving low-level care, 4,000 fewer than in 2005.[31]

How many households receive council-funded home care?

Due to the trend of targeting services towards those with higher levels of need, the number of households receiving home care funded by councils fell from 381,700 in 2001 to 354,500 in 2005.[32] In 1992, over 500,000 households received funded care.

Do older people know which statutory services are available to them?

Older people are often bewildered by the rules concerning what statutory services will and will not provide, and are often reluctant to complain. This is especially acute for those with cultural or language barriers.[33]

How many older people suffer from malnutrition?

10% of those over 65 are at medium or high risk of malnutrition.[34] 40% of older people are malnourished when admitted to hospital and 60% of older people in hospital are at risk of becoming malnourished (or more malnourished) while they are there.[35]

90% of recipients of home adaptations experience improved quality of life. The quality of life also improves for their carers and other family members[36].

How many older people are carers?

There are 1.5 million people aged 60+ providing unpaid care: almost 350,000 carers are aged 75+ and over 8,000 are aged 90+, 4000 of these provide care for 50 or more hours of care a week.[37]

Do older people eat healthily?

Of those aged 65 and over, less than one-third of men (31%) or women (29%) consumed the recommended five portions or more per day of fruit and vegetables.[38]

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Leisure

Do older people participate in the arts?

Compared with other people, older people aged 75 and over are least likely to visit a museum or gallery and visit historic sites. There is also lower participation in the arts by older people, especially those aged 75 and over, and very low participation in sport.[39]

Do older people have access to digital television?

Older people have significantly lower rates of access to digital television compared with people in other age groups.[40] In 2006, it is estimated that 52% of people aged 65 or over had access to digital television.[41] Digital switchover will be phased in between 2008 and 2012, led by Whitehaven, Cumbria in October 2007.

What is the most popular form of exercise for people age 60 and above?

In 2002, walking was the most popular physical activity for older people.[42]

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Social inclusion and communities

Are older people lonely?

In 2007, 13% of those aged 65 or over say there are often of always lonely.[43]

How many older people live alone?

3 in 5 women aged 75 and over live alone, compared to 3 in 20 men aged 75 and over[44].

Are older people lonely?

Three quarters of a million older people say that they are often or always lonely.[45] Nearly half a million older people never see their friends.[46] 48% of over-65s consider television their main form of company.[47]

Are older people socially excluded?

49% of older people experience some form of social exclusion – a fifth of older people (1.1 million people) experience ‘multiple exclusion’.[48]

Do older people have access to computers?

In 2006, 45% of people aged 50 or over had used a computer in the previous three months.[49] 8.4 million people over the age of 50 are unable to benefit directly from computer and internet access.[50]

How many older people are abused?

500,000 older people are believed to be abused at any one time in the UK[51].

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Employment

How many older people work?

In Autumn 2006, 9.8% of men aged 65 and over and 11.7% of women aged 60 and over were still in employment.[52]

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Republic of Ireland [53]

In April 2005, there were an estimated 461,000 people aged 65 an over in Ireland, which accounted for 11.2% of the population. This is the lowest ratio of older people to total population in the EU. The Central Statistic Office estimates that by 2036 older people may make up 20% to 23% of the Irish population.

Women make up the majority (56%) of older people in Ireland, and this rises with age, with 68.8% of those 85 and over being female.

The number of older people living alone is increasing; in 1981, 20% of older people lived alone, in 2002 that had risen to 29%.

The average ‘equivalised’ income[54] of an older person is €13,395 compared to €18,775 which is the average ‘equivalised’ income of the total population.

7% of older people are at work, with a strong gender difference as almost 13% of older men are at work versus 2% for older women.

In 2004, 27% of those aged 65 or over were at risk of poverty[55], versus 19% for the population as a whole.

Around 90% of those aged 65 or over own their own homes, and most do not have a mortgage to pay.

51% of older people are affected by a chronic illness.

In 2004, just over 21,000 people lived in long-say institutions. Of these, 93.9% were aged 65 and over, 66.1% were aged 80 or over and 17.4% were aged 90 or over.

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