Principle 6 – Promote a new way of thinking
A new way of thinking about ageing and older people will be needed to embed Independent Living at a strategic level.
What do we mean by a new way of thinking?
By 2020, half the adult population in the UK will be aged 50 and over. The way we think about ageing, older people and disability will need to change in order to catch up with this demographic reality. We need to move away from negative attitudes that implicitly or explicitly portray older disabled people as a drain on public resources - and move towards a more realistic, forward-thinking and opportunity-focused way of thinking that does not focus just on problems, but also recognises the potential for generating creative new solutions.
How does a new way of thinking relate to Independent Living and older people?
A new way of thinking will lead to new ways of organising resources and new models of support that will make voice, choice and control a reality for older disabled people. Without a new way of thinking, it will be very difficult for Independent Living to become the rule. This is because current negative attitudes towards ageing, older people and disability affect decision-making at all levels:
- societal decisions about what to expect from older people, whether this will be a good society to grow old in
- policy decisions about what direction to take
- investment decisions about where to focus scarce resources
- service management decisions about what services to develop and invest in
- workforce decisions about what fields to develop, what skills and training to provide
- family decisions about what to expect from older relatives and what is the right thing to do
A new way of thinking will reorient decision-making at all these levels to a more positive paradigm of voice, choice and control for older disabled people.
What must be done at the strategic level to embed this new way of thinking?
Start local.
Within yourself:
- Examine your own attitudes to ageing and how they impact on your day-to-day work
Within your own organisation:
- Audit current practice - are there structural causes of negative attitudes?
- Challenge negative thinking and behaviour
- Focus on the future
Within the locality you serve:
- Ask smart questions. Don't settle for easy answers. The real answers will be more interesting than you think. When analysing demographic data, for example, query which segments of the older population are growing, which are not, why or why not, what else is happening elsewhere that impacts on this, what will this look like in 10, 20, 50 years?
- Embed a new way of thinking
Within the wider system:
- How does this link to other big agendas - the environment, globalisation, etc
Translate all of the above into action.
The current way of thinking about ageing is outdated and will change - perhaps slowly if led by research and data, or more quickly if led by pressure from older people who are increasingly finding their voice. It will be much better to be leading the curve than following it.
Resources
New Dynamics of Ageing - A seven-year, £20 million, multidisciplinary research programme that aims to improve the quality of life of older people by providing practical guidance for policy and its implementation
Age Unlimited - Programme launched in 2009 by the NESTA Lab which is focused on innovating public services