Ageing Well in FlintshireAction Plan 2016-2020 Summary….making Flintshire a good place to grow older for everyone

The fact that we are living longer is something to celebrate but it is not enough to simply have additional years of life if they are limited by poor health and dependence on services. The Ageing Well in Flintshire Action Plan identifies what needs to be done and by whom, to make growing older in Flintshire a good place to be.

Our Ageing Well Plan is part of a Wales wide approach led by the Older People’s Commissioner for Wales. To find out more about the work of the Commissioner visit www.olderpeoplewales.com

Follow this link to find out more about the national Ageing Well in Wales programme.

What does the Action Plan focus on?

•CreatingAge-FriendlyCommunities• Fallsprevention•CreatingDementiaSupportiveCommunities•Providingopportunitiesforlearningandemployment•Preventinglonelinessandisolation

For each of these areas we have created a “postcard from the future”. This reminds us about what success will look like and a list of actions to get us there which in this summary we have listed as a set of “to do’s”. At the end of each year, we will report on what progress has been made and you can find out more at any time by contacting Helen Jones, Older People’sStrategy Coordinator via helen.jones@flintshire.gov.uk, or telephone 01352 701429.

There have been some more good changes in the village since I wrote to youlast,andit’shadabigimpactonmylife.DoyourememberIpluckedup the courage to attend the community meeting in the village hall? Well, I can’t believe I actually had some good ideas and the community is working together to put some of them in place. That big group of boys who always used to hang around outside the village hall on youth club nights has been helping to make a community garden and last week we had our fi rst garden party there. Some of the children had baked cakes in the After School Club, and the older ones from the High School served tea and coffee. We now have a weekly games night in the village hall and we play some of our old favourites like beetle drive, scrabble and dominoes as well as bingo which is a big hit with the teenagers! I’ve just come home from a session on how to use a tablet computer run by the Youth Club. I can’t believe you can do so much on one of those little screens. I’ve just found out how to use ‘Skype’ and I’ve been able to speak with Emma and the children and SEE them at the SAME TIME!! It’s lovely because I don’t get to see them very often since they moved to Manchester. The youngsters at the Youth Club were very patient with me as I didn’t have a clue and found it a little scary at fi rst. Now I can’t wait for next week’s session. I’m so busy now, and have much more confi dence, and the best thing is, the boys outside the Youth Club now say hello to me and have even helped me carry my shopping home.Hope your family is well

Best wishes

Maureen Disclaimer: This ‘postcard from the future’ exists by way of example for training purposes and no guarantee is made that the services identifi ed will be available in the future.

Dear Carol

Mrs Carol BrownAny roadAny town County Post Code

AGE FRIENDLY COMMUNITIES - POSTCARD FROM THE FUTURE

TO DO LIST

• Work with communities to fi nd out

what “Age Friendly” means to them,

what needs to change in their area

and how we can all work together to

make those changes.

• Make it easier for people to get any

information and advice that they need

to stay well, active and independent

or to get the right support when they

need it.

I want opportunities to participate

within the local community

We need accessible transport to

maintain access to services / leisure

I need timely/easy access to

information/ advice

We all need safe outdoor spaces

to promote wellbeing and independence

We want affordable

homes that enable us to live independently

We value opportunities for continued learning and employment

There are a variety of initiatives taking place across Flintshire that have a positive impact on the health and wellbeing of older people. Making our communities Age-Friendly will promote community cohesion and encourage everyone to make best use of the resources available to them.

Age Friendly Communities

InFebruary2014,FlintshireCountyCouncilsignedthe“DublinDeclaration”,thereforedemonstratingitscommitmenttomake sure that Flintshire is “Age Friendly”.

A place is age-friendly when it helps and enables everyone (irrespective of age) to stay healthy and active and participate in community activities, treats everyone with respect and protects the most vulnerable.

I need to be able

to access services

Thank you for the lovely card and fl owers you sent for my birthday, and especially the advice about mum’s falls.

Mum has fallen a few times but she wasn’t telling me as she didn’t want me to worry, but I knew something was up because she was relying on that stick more and more and she was hardly leaving the house. I fi nally persuadedmumtoseetheDoctorandshewasreferredtothatserviceyoutold me about for a falls assessment. Anyway, mum has had her medication reviewed and she has been attending a falls class. At fi rst, she wouldn’t go to the classes, so I had to go with her, but after a couple of weeks she started to go on her own and she even looks forward to the classes. She’s made a few friends and they make it a bit of a social event as they go for a coffee and sandwich afterwards. It’s made a big difference already. Mum is going out more and she’s started to leave the stick behind so I know she’s getting her confi dence back. It’s made a difference to me too – mum hasn’t fallen for a few weeks and I’m not worrying about mum losing her independence and being stuck at home on her own. When the falls class fi nishes mum is talking about joining a local walking group with a few others in the class. The instructor has convinced them that if they stay active it will keep them healthy and help prevent further falls.

Hope your family is wellBest wishes

Jane Disclaimer: This ‘postcard from the future’ exists by way of example for training purposes and no guarantee is made that the services identifi ed will be available in the future.

Dear Sue

Mrs Sue WhiteAny roadAny town County Post Code

TO DO LIST

• Raise awareness about what

organisations and individuals can do

to prevent falls

• Provide services to identify people at

risk and offer appropriate support and

advice

• Identify and promote community

based activities to support individuals

to maintain their strength and

balance or take other steps to protect

themselves from falls.

FALLS PREVENTION - POSTCARD FROM THE FUTURE

A lot of work has been done across North Wales to describe what we should be doing to reduce the risk of falls, at home (including care homes), in communities and hospitals. We call these “Service Models”. They focus on identifying people at risk of falling and ensuring timely access to a range of interventions to reduce identifi ed risks.

Strength and balance exercise

can reduce falls by as much as 54% (Otago, FaME)

Side effects of some medications may increase the

risk of falls. Medication reviews with your doctor or pharmacist

is therefore recommended.

Poor vision (even when wearing glasses) may increase

your risk of falling. It is therefore important to have

regular sight tests.

Falls Prevention

Falls are a major cause of disability and death in older people and can have a signifi cant impact on their wellbeing through loss of confi dence and independence. However falls are preventable and are not an inevitable part of getting older.

Thank you for your lovely card and kind words of encouragement. I woke up this morning and told myself ‘I’m going to have a good day’ and it’s started off well with this postcard to you.

Since my diagnosis I have spent a lot of time worrying, but I had a really good chat with the Occupational Therapist who came to see me and I realise it’s not all doom and gloom. I didn’t realise how common dementia is, and how many things there are to support people like me. On a good day, I’m fi ne, but on days that are not so good, I have struggled to do the smallest task . This used to worry me and made me frightened to go out, but now I am much more confi dent.MylocaltownisDementiaFriendly,andIfeelquitesafe.EveryweekIgotothelocal shops knowing support is there if I need it, and there is a memory café I go to once a month. I like it when we have singing sessions, I seem to be able to remember the words of all my favourite songs. Now I have my ‘Buddi’ I can take Rusty for a walk again, I really missed doing this when the regular route became unfamiliar, but now if I feel disorientated I just press the alarm and someone supports me. Most of the time I’m Ok though. Jim and I are much better with each other too. We were really getting on each other’s nerves because he wouldn’t let me out of his sight and he didn’t sleep very well either in case I got up in the night to go out shopping or clean the house. He now understands me more. Of course I still worry about the future, but whilst I’m having good days like this, I know life is defi nitely worth living.

Hope your family is wellBest wishes

Megan

Dear Gwenda

Mrs Gwenda DaviesAny roadAny town County Post Code

TO DO LIST

• Increase the number of towns in Flintshire

that are “Dementia Friendly.” To fi nd out

more contact Luke Pickering-Jones

luke.pickering-jones@fl intshire.gov.uk or

telephone 01352 702655.

• Increase the number of “Dementia Friends”

living and working in communities to be

supportive to people living with dementia

• Work to increase the number, type and

range of activities and support available

to people with dementia and their families

and carers.

• Encourage individuals to make lifestyle

choices to reduce their risk of developing

health problems (including dementia) as

they age.

Disclaimer: This ‘postcard from the future’ exists by way of example for training purposes and no guarantee is made that the services identifi ed will be available in the future.

DEMENTIA SUPPORTIVE COMMUNITIES - POSTCARD FROM THE FUTURE

In Flintshire we want people living with dementia to be able to live fulfi lled and meaningful lives, to feel safe and be supported intheircommunitiesandtobesuretherewillbecareandsupportservicesflexibleenoughtomeettheiruniquewishesandneeds.

Encourage others to make a positive difference to people with

dementia… become a Dementia Champion. https://www.dementiafriends.org.uk/

Learn more about dementia and the small ways that you can help…

become a Dementia Friend.https://www.dementiafriends.org.uk/

Dementia Supportive Communities

Dementia is not an inevitable part of getting older but the likelihood of developing dementia rises with age.

Thank you for your Good Luck card and words of encouragement. I had been in my current job for nearly 20 years and really needed a new challenge. It seems that new career opportunities are hard to fi nd when you get to our age, so when I saw that ad in the local paper about training opportunities for entrepreneurs I was keen to fi nd out more.The training was held in the evenings in the village hall so it was really handy. There was a real mix on the course as well: some youngsters who had some really good ideas but no idea about how to get them started, a few like me who had been in their jobs for a long while and wanted to setup on their own, and a few people who were recently retired.

The course was really good for me, as it helped me to identify my strengths and weaknesses, and has given me the information and tools I need to take the next steps. I’ve made some useful contacts too, and will no doubt keep intouchoverthecomingmonthsasmybusinessdevelops.Thisisquitean exciting time for me, and it’s given me a new lease of life. Who said “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks!”

I’ll keep you posted on progress.Kind regards,

Bob

Dear Graham

Mr Graham JonesAny roadAny town County Post Code

TO DO LIST

• Raise awareness of the barriers faced by

older people in maintaining or securing

employment or appropriate learning

opportunities and advocate for services

and support to be inclusive for all

• Work with training and learning providers

to increase/promote opportunities for

older people to access a range of informal/

formal learning in local communities.

• Provide access to quality assured

information to support people aged 50+

to plan for their future

• Work with partners to promote

opportunities for older people to be

an active part of their community e.g.

through volunteering

Disclaimer: This ‘postcard from the future’ exists by way of example for training purposes and no guarantee is made that the services identifi ed will be available in the future.

OPPORTUNITIES FOR LEARNING & EMPLOYMENT - POSTCARD FROM THE FUTURE

You can take up learning at any stage in life, but it is often more rewarding

and enjoyable when you’re older because you’ve usually chosen to do

it rather than had to.

More than one million people over 65 now

choose to stay in work.

Despite this factand theneedordesireamongstmany towork longer,someolderpeople faceparticularchallenges inentering or maintaining employment.

Lifelong learning is critical not only to maintain a competitive position in the labour market, but also for wider health and wellbeing benefits. Learning and skills development can include (but is not restricted to) financial and digital inclusion to help older people to become more resilient in later life.

Opportunities For Learning & Employment

“Older People have a wealth of knowledge and experience which is currently underappreciated and undervalued in the workplace….. and are currently worth over £1billion to the Welsh economy every year” Older People’s Commissioner for Wales.

You said I was doing too much and you were right! I thought keeping busy was making me happy, until I read that article you sent me from the paper on Loneliness, it really struck a chord.

I had never considered myself lonely as I am so busy and have many friends, but reading the article I realised, that whilst I was often helping out in the local charity shop and saw family and friends regularly, I was in fact, lonely.I would spend most of my day in the shop, then the children would pop in to see me on their way home from work, then when they had gone… silence.I found out about this club for men who meet twice a week to share skills and ideas and make things. They call it a ‘Men’s Shed’, but we meet in the Community Centre, and all the tools are kept locked up in a store room. We’ve made a few things now, which we’ve mostly donated to the school to sell at the school fair, but we recently made a bench for the school playground. Some of the men bring their grandsons along in the holidays, and it’s good to be able to teach them new skills – it reminds me of when Jack was young and I used to help him with his school projects. I still work in the shop, but just twice a week, and the children come round at the weekends when they have more time to sit and chat. It’s funny, it used to be them doing all the talking, but now it’s me. And when they’re gone… silence, but I don’t mind it any more.

Give my regards to the familyBest wishes

MikeDisclaimer: This ‘postcard from the future’ exists by way of example for training purposes and no guarantee is made that the services identifi ed will be available in the future.

Dear Daisy

Mr Graham JonesAny roadAny town County Post Code

TO DO LIST

• Promote national campaigns and

initiatives to raise awareness of the

impact of loneliness and isolation.

• Identify opportunities to provide

information and advice about

activities/services that could

minimise the risk of loneliness

• Challenge organisations to

understand the impact that their

decisions may have in relation

to social isolation and loneliness

amongst older people

LONELINESS & ISOLATION - POSTCARD FROM THE FUTURE

1 in 6 people age over 50 report being lonely (Loneliness amongst older people and the impact of family connections.

WRVS,2012)

Two fifths all older people (about 3.9

million) say the television is their main company

(Age UK, 2014)

17% of older people are in contact with family, friends and neighbours less than once a week and 11% are in contact less than once a month

(Victor et al, 2003)

Higher % of women than men report

feeling lonely “some of the time” or

“often” (ONS, 2013)

Over half (51%) of all people aged 75 and

over live alone (ONS 2010)

Loneliness & Isolation

Lacking social connections is a comparable risk factor for early death as smoking 15 cigarettes a day, and is worse for us than well-known risk factors such as obesity and physical inactivity.

The terms ‘loneliness’ and ‘isolation’ are often used together but they are different:

• Apersonisisolatediftheyarenotincontactwithfriendsorlovedonesorhavenocommunityinvolvementoraccess to services. A person can however be isolated but not feel lonely.

• Lonelinessishowapersonfeelsiftheydonothavepositiveconnectionswithotherpeoplewherethatisneeded.

The risks of loneliness and isolation appears to increase with age, particularly among those with long term health problems. Research shows that loneliness and social isolation are harmful to our health and increases the likelihood of us needing more support in later life.