The value of older volunteers

Craig Berry, senior researcher at the International Longevity Centre-UK, writes for ePolitix.com during National Volunteers' Week.

National Volunteers' Week, from June 1 to 7, gives us a chance to celebrate the role of volunteers in society. Countless charities, not least those providing support and delivering services to older people, depend on the often invaluable input of volunteers. Yet as the population ages, it is time also to think about how older people themselves can make an input to society through volunteering.

Many older people already volunteer frequently and extensively as part of an 'active retirement'. Indeed, millions of people undertake unpaid 'work' within their communities and neighbourhoods that may not necessarily be recognised as volunteering. And it is precisely the latter that may become more vital in an ageing society, as the care needs of people living much longer lives than ever before start to mount up.

Older people often take on informal caring responsibilities for spouses and other relatives. More formal forms of volunteers will surely be important to ensuring that future care needs are met. Given the fiscal crisis, a fully professionalised National Care Service is a long way off.

Yet this does not mean we should view volunteering in purely functional terms. Volunteering can be a hugely rewarding way of 'winding down' to full retirement for older people. If mobilised in community-based care provision, older people can use volunteering opportunities to retain and develop social relationships in the local area, combating the sense of isolation they might otherwise face post-retirement.

To facilitate volunteering among older generations, it might be necessary to reconsider state pension entitlements, that is, move towards a contribution/reward model and away from an insurance model. However, we should also think about how to incentivise older volunteers by acknowledging their unique status and skills sets. The voluntary sector must not place older volunteers at the bottom of the pile, but rather find ways of recognising the value of their contributions.

One further benefit of encouraging older volunteers is that it may serve to foster positive inter-generational relations. In the workplace, it is normal to find old and young at opposite ends of organisational hierarchies. The voluntary sector should be a sphere where different generations learn from each other and work together.

Craig Berry

International Longevity Centre-UK

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