With a new year comes a media spotlight on self-improvement, “healthy ageing” and “longevity” feature highly in both social and mainstream media. Looking for tips to stay well as you age? Check out here, here and here.
Seeking advice on how to live forever? No problem – it’s covered here and if you find this a bit ghoulish then a more “accessible” approach is presented here.
Amidst the supplements, plasma injections, repurposed drugs and a plethora of “longevity hacks” runs a few common themes: social connection; exercise; clean air; pure food; these, everyone agrees, all play a significant role in ageing well and enhancing longevity.
And what underpins social connection, exercise, clean air and pure food, but rarely mentioned is – guess what?
The places where we live and how these places are designed, developed and managed.
The ageing well and longevity gurus rarely focus on place, or its component parts including housing and infrastructure. I’ve never seen anyone promote a longevity “life hack” centred on lobbying or campaigning for better housing or local services. A notable exception are the advocates of Blue Zones – places around the world where inhabitants enjoy exceptional longevity due to lifestyle and place-based features such as – you guessed it – social connection, exercise, clean air and pure food.
Despite some questions about the validity of “official” Blue Zone claims about longevity, the concept is a powerful one for placemaking, and if this provides a meaningful template for ageing well in our built environment – great. As I’ve argued before, everyone deserves to live in a Blue Zone.
Encouragingly, we’ve entered 2025 here in the UK with some raised awareness and active campaigns focused on ageing well in our built environment.
At the end of last year the government’s Older People’s Housing Taskforcepublished its findings on ageing in our built environment in Our Future Homes: Housing that provides wellbeing and community for an ageing population. The report concluded that
“we are at a sliding door moment – the number of people of pensionable age is rising faster than people of working age – requiring us to find creative solutions to these challenges. A big step in the right direction might be for all agencies across the whole system to recognise that age-friendly and inclusive homes and neighbourhoods work for everyone, whereas design for younger ages does not always address issues presented later in the life course”.
And issued a call for action
“for all stakeholders to co-produce, with senior citizens from diverse backgrounds, housing environments that enhance wellbeing in later life and contribute to local communities. If we are to address the potential challenge of a workforce being unable to meet the needs of an ageing population - housing, wellbeing and community needs to be everyone’s business”.
Earlier this month Age UK London published its research on public toilet provision in London in Lifting the Lid: Looking for a better understanding of local authorities and public toilet provision in London. This research builds on Age UK’s 2022 report Public Toilets in London: the views of older Londoners which showed
“Too many older Londoners avoid leaving their home as much as they would like because they are not confident they will be able to access a toilet if they need one. Londoners such as those with health conditions requiring more frequent visits to the toilet are among those most affected”.
The new research has been buoyed by the formation of the London Loo Alliance at the end of last year, and an active campaign to demonstrate the impact of poor toilet provision on the health of all Londoners. So far it is effectively building support for improving this critical element of our built environment, with some encouraging outcomes.
Also earlier this month a call to action was made by a committed group of built environment and health practitioners to acknowledge the health requirements of those living in places undergoing regeneration and changes in their built environment, and to actively seek ways to not only “Do No Harm” but also to Build for Health.
Build for Health, is a nascent campaign aimed at influencing practice in four constituencies:
1. investors, developers and operators of our homes and places
2. Legislators and government bodies on housing, planning and health policy
3. Healthcare providers
4. Local communities in places undergoing regeneration and changes in their built environment
Its members are seeking to connect the language and practice within each of these constituencies to deliver homes, buildings and places that promote good health, ageing in place and health equity.
Next time you read or hear about ways to increase your longevity or to age well or better, ask yourself about the place where you live. Are there opportunities to exercise safely and accessibly? Do they foster social connectivity? Is healthy, pure food available locally and affordably? Is this a communal activity? Is air quality high? Can residents access and enjoy green and blue spaces? do they feel safe and comfortable leaving home, without a “loo leash”?
This could be the year when we raise the bar from “ageing in place to “ageing well in a thriving place”.
Clare Delmar
Listen to Locals
25 January 2025
