ageing population

• Life expectancy refers to how long on average a person born in a certain year can expect to live to.
• Females are more likely to live longer than men
• There are class, gender and ethnic differences in life expectancy.
• Working class men have a lower life expectancy than middle class men
• People in the north have a lower life expectancy than the south due to a higher working class population
• Walker - Working class are more likely to die seven years earlier than middle class
• An ageing population is the average age of the UK population is rising.
• There are fewer young people and more older people in the population.
• There is an ageing population because:

  • Decline in fertility
  • Decline in infant mortality
  • Increased life expectancy
• The effects of an ageing population is:

  1. Public Services
  2. Pensioner Households
  3. Dependency Ratio
• Public services are affected because:

  • Older people consume a large proportion of services such as health and social care
  • More money spent on these services for the elderly
  • Change to policies such as housing or transport
• Pensioner house holds are affected because:

  • Pensioners living alone has increased
  • Now account for 1/8 households
  • Feminization of later life
• Dependency ratio is affected because:

  • Economically dependent group
  • Need to be provided for
  • Increases burden on the working population
• However people assume that old age means they are economically dependent however often they have money to their name and savings.
• Hirsch = Financing an older population

  • Paying more from savings and taxes while we are working needing to work for longer
  • Reverse trend of current early retirement
  • Need older people to trade down into smaller houses
  • This would free up housing for younger families