Policy

There is a great variety of work taking place through regional and local Age Concerns with black and minority ethnic communities. A selection of projects and programmes is outlined here.

Age Concern Blackburn with Darwen

Age Concern Blackburn with Darwen provides a range of services for older people from the local Asian heritage communities. This currently includes day care for physically and mentally frail older people at the ‘Apna Ghar’ centre, which has been designed to cater for their specific cultural and religious needs and provides bathing, chiropody, prayer facilities, a cooked halal lunch and a range of social activities.

The Ageing Well project runs a specific programme of health and wellbeing activities aimed at Asian Heritage older people, such as Tai Chi, walks, swimming, yoga, IT tuition and gardening. Advice & Information Services provide a welfare benefits service, including a home visiting service, and advice is available in all the local Asian spoken languages.

In addition we are currently running a project aimed at raising awareness of the importance of early diagnosis of dementia, in relation to obtaining appropriate support and assistance. One of its main strands is to raise awareness amongst the Asian heritage communities through the production and dissemination of culturally appropriate information and support resources.

Age Concern Bolton

Age Concern Bolton runs an Ageing Well project in conjunction with its local Primary Care Trust, funded by the New Opportunities Fund and Neighbourhood Renewal Initiative. A team of older volunteers from mixed cultural and religious backgrounds act as Senior Health Mentors, delivering a range of services to elders from diverse ethnic communities

Age Concern Brighton, Hove & Portslade

Having commissioned research into areas of unmet need in the Black and Minority Ethnic Communities (BMEC) AC Brighton, Hove and Portslade has developed close links with the BMEC Partnership in the city, supporting their work wherever possible. A recent funding award from the Community Fund is enabling them to take their I&A Service out into the community on an outreach basis, with a view to targeting (inter alia) the BMEC. They also provide direct support to the Sudanese Elders in terms of office space.

Age Concern Camden

Age Concern Camden provides a Direct Payments Support Service for over 65s for their care and its BME Support worker is linking directly with users and carers from Black and minority ethnic groups to encourage take up of Direct Payments, which offer greater independence and flexibility in support arrangements. Age Concern Camden is also working with BME communities to promote the take up of flexible use packages, with examples of how this can provide them with more culturally appropriate services. Its Advice and Support Team provides information and advice for Asian, Somali, African and Caribbean older people on a wide range of issues including housing, getting help at home, pensions, welfare benefits and other financial matters, transport, access to health care, leisure, educational opportunities, personal issues and carers.

Age Concern Coventry

The population of Coventry is very diverse and multi-cultural. Age Concern Coventry works to improve access to information and advice services for Asian elders, led by an Information and Advice Officer with the appropriate language skills and cultural awareness. Issues addressed include benefits, heating grants, disabled housing adaptation work, sheltered and very sheltered accommodation. Referrals are regularly made to Social Services for assessment, Community Care, to local solicitors for will making, immigration and funeral plan services and to Age Concern Coventry’s First Check Point Service, which provides details of local accredited tradespeople. Regular surgeries are held at places where Asian elders meet and translations are undertaken into community languages such as Hindi, Gujarati, Punjabi and Urdu. Contact: Mahendra Soni, Information and Advice Officer 024 7623 1999.

Age Concern East Midlands

Age Concern East Midlands (made up of 5 Age Concern organisations and 34 Age Concern groups from the region) has jointly implemented the East Midlands Regional BME Elders Project  in conjunction with Voice East Midlands. Its key aims: to help the development of local forums to which any group or organisation in the East Midlands that delivers a service to older people from a minority ethnic background can contribute their ideas and make their views known; to feed back these views to decision-makers and policy-makers and ensure the voice of those groups that serve minority-ethnic elders is heard. The project held its final annual conference, as part of the current stage of this project, in October 2005, the report of which is available from: Nik Trivedi, Voice East Midlands, 0115 950 88 20 or Email: Nik 

Age Concern Exeter

Age Concern Exeter has contributed to an enquiry looking at the health and social care needs of Muslim elders in Exeter, undertaken by Devon County Council Social Services Directorate with the Islamic Centre of the South West and Connections Independent Social Work Agency. Although the percentage of the population of Exeter from black and minority ethnic backgrounds is still relatively small (c3% according to 2001 Census data) the number of BME elders is growing and a disproportionate number have poor health. In addition, members of the Muslim community had drawn attention to the need for a culturally-specific day service for older people. Further information about the enquiry report ‘A Question of Fairness’ can be obtained from Brenda Laker 

Age Concern Herefordshire and Worcestershire

Age Concern Herefordshire and Worcestershire runs a lunch club under the name of Saathi, meaning friend or companion. The club is more than a venue to eat, acting as a bridge to bring service providers to the people with the aim of ensuring older people from all sectors of the community are able to access service and support which is culturally sensitive. One direct outcome has been an exercise class for Asian Elders. In addition, local ethnic minority elders identified a need to improve English language skills and so a language class for beginners has also been set up.

Age Concern Hillingdon

The Ethnic Minority Access Project (020 8848 1380) provides information, advice and advocacy for older people from Somali, South Asian and other black and minority ethnic communities and facilitates meetings of the BME Elders Forum, members of which also attend the Borough’s Older People’s Assembly. The Multicultural Food and Fitness Club is a café/lunch club offering culturally appropriate lunches and a range of activities including tap dancing and Tai Chi. A partnership with Healthy Hillingdon also brings workshops on healthy eating etc (020 8573 7341). Abhay (Fearless) is an Information, Advice, Advocacy and Counselling service, provided in partnership with Age Concerns London, Ealing and Harrow, with the Confederation of South Indian Organisations as lead partner. Age Concern Hillingdon provides access to the service in Hillingdon on Fridays and Ealing on Mondays (01895 431331).

Age Concern Hyndburn 

Age Concern Hyndburn works with a focus group made up of representatives from every organisation and community group representing the interests of older people from ethnic minority backgrounds, which is committed to the development and implementation of services. New funding will provide a day care service for ethnic minority elders based at a sheltered accommodation centre. It also works closely in support of the Hyndburn Cultural Association, with which it plans to place a development officer to assist in the development of day care and other services that address the needs of ethnic minority elders. Contact Age Concern Hyndburn

Age Concern Kirklees

Age Concern Kirklees has a day centre specifically for Pakistani and Asian women.  Contact Age Concern Kirklees

Age Concern Lancashire

Age Concern Lancashire’s Ageing Well project, working in partnership with the key statutory health and social care services, has trained a team of older volunteers from mixed cultural and religious backgrounds to act as Senior Health Mentors to focus on the health and social needs within their specific ethnic minority communities.

 

Age Concern Leicestershire and Rutland

Age Concern Leicestershire and Rutland actively supports the development of services and support for older people from a wide variety of minority ethnic communities in a number of ways: day services in community settings that offer culturally appropriate service for Asian elders; an Ethnic Minority Outreach Service providing support to potential job seekers of all ages from minority ethnic communities; social activities including luncheon clubs, social groups, dance groups and exercise sessions; and the Leicestershire and Rutland Minority Ethnic Forum. The Forum provides support to an increasing number of independent groups for minority ethnic elders and engages in consultation and networking with a wide range of statutory and other organisations involved in health, social care, leisure and culture.  Contact Rina Morjaria 0116 2992233

Age Concern London

Age Concern London has a dedicated Development Officer to develop a London-wide regional Information & Advice Project for black and minority ethnic older people and their informal elder carers. The project is funded for 3 years and will cover all 33 London boroughs, working with 11 per year. Contact Flora Williams 

Age Concern Portsmouth

Their Intergenerational Project currently has two Asian volunteers (fondly referred to as the ‘Aunties’ by the children) who teach basic sewing skills in a local Primary School. A Pakistani Sessional Worker, who also assists and promotes Healthy Eating and Cooking Classes alongside a Social Services Home Economics student in another Portsmouth Primary School, supervises this. Contact Age Concern Portsmouth

Contact us

Lullyn Tavares
Administration & Projects Officer
Tel: 020 8765 7467
Email: Lullyn Tavares

Claire Ball
Ethnic Minorities Development & Policy Officer
Tel: 020 8765 7718
Email: Claire Ball