The facts - when I'm 65

As a nation, we face enormous challenges to support our ageing population:

• There are 9.6 million people over 65 in the UK with 4.6 million of those being over 75 years old. 
  
  
• People over 75 will account for 10% of the population by 2023. 
  
  
• Two million older people care for another person for long hours and many years – over half of these get no regular support from home-care agencies, despite being in poor health themselves.
  
  
• 48,000 older people are homeless in England and Wales.
  
  
• 82% of older people, living at home, are poorly nourished. 
  
  
• Around 10% of older people who are cared for suffer abuse. 
  
  
• Almost 40% of pensioners need to claim means-tested benefits to reach a subsistence standard of living, yet £1.7 billion of benefits remain unclaimed each year.
  
  
• As a society we need to ensure that our older people not only live for longer but their lives are worth living for longer.
  
  
• Nearly one third of older people believe their quality of life has deteriorated over the past year.
  
  
• 1.8 million pensioners live in poverty.
  
  
• One in three report little contact with friends.  Isolation and inactivity lead to health problems including depression, dementia, anxiety and decreased mobility.