Age-Friendly Approaches and Old-Age Exclusion: A Cross-City Analysis

Tine Buffel,Samuèle Rémillard-Boilard,Kieran Walsh,Liesbeth De Donder,Bernard Mcdonald,An-Sofie Smetcoren

doi:10.3384/ijal.1652-8670.1470

Abstract

Developing ‘Age-Friendly Cities and Communities (AFCC)’ has become a key part of policies aimed at improving the quality of life of older people in urban areas. Despite this development, there is evidence of rising inequalities among urban elders, and little known about the potential and limitations of the age-friendly model to reduce old-age exclusion. This article addresses this research gap by comparing how Brussels, Dublin, and Manchester, as three members of the Global Network of AFCC, have responded to social exclusion in later life. The article combines data from document analysis and stakeholder interviews to examine: first, the age-friendly approach and the goal of reducing social exclusion; and second, barriers to developing age-friendly policies as a means of addressing exclusion. The paper suggests that there are reciprocal benefits in linking age-friendly and social exclusion agendas for producing new ways of combatting unequal experiences of ageing in cities.

Highlights

This article examines the potential of “age-friendly” city initiatives to reduce “social exclusion” in old age, drawing on the example of three European cities
This paper reports on a comparative study of age-friendly strategies in three European cities, exploring the extent to which they address issues relating to social exclusion in later life
The first section provides the background against which the age-friendly programmes have emerged in the respective cities

Summary

Introduction

This article examines the potential of “age-friendly” city initiatives to reduce “social exclusion” in old age, drawing on the example of three European cities. Reducing the number of people at risk of exclusion has been a central theme in European social policy, reflecting concerns about the social and economic costs when individuals and communities become cut off from the wider society (Eurostat 2017). Enduring inequalities in the experience of ageing suggest that policies have had limited effect in reducing old-age exclusion (Nazroo 2017; Scharf & Shaw 2017). Addressing this issue has become especially urgent given the impact of economic austerity and widening inequities within urban settings (Buffel & Phillipson 2016, 2018)

Results

Discussion

Conclusion