AN ACCRINGTON care home has backed the Mayor of Hyndburn after she launched a campaign calling for a Minister for Older People.
Springhill Care Group, which runs Springhill Care Home in Fairfield Street, said it agreed with Councillor Colette McCormack that government action was ‘urgently needed’ to focus on the issues facing the UK’s growing population of older people.
There are now over 14million people in the UK aged 60 and above, more than the number under 18.
The number of people aged 60 or over is expected to pass the 20million mark by 2031, and there are expected to be more than a million people with dementia by 2021.
Ken Nolan, chairman of Springhill Care Group, which also runs homes in Skelmersdale and Bristol, said: “We are joining the lobby to establish a dedicated Minister for Older People, and by that we mean commitment at government level to issues including resourcing good quality care, housing and finance.
“All the information being gathered for the future tells us that the lot of the older person from the age of 60 plus with healthcare needs is going to get tougher and tougher.
“We want to help this campaign and highlight some of the major issues facing older people now and in the future.
“This is a major national issue, and we believe it warrants a visible commitment from the Government.”
Coun McCormack opened a groundbreaking new £5million complex at Springhill Care Home last month.
She wants to persuade politicians to pay more attention to the UK’s ageing society following the appointment of Liz Kendall as the first Shadow Minister for Care and Older People in October last year.
She said: “We believe this issue is so important and growing all the time, so it needs representation at the highest level in terms of policy and legislation.”
A national campaign called Grey Pride now has more than 100,000 names in a petition calling for a dedicated Minister for Older People to be created in government.
