Age Concern New Zealand is a trusted charity with a proud heritage of over 50 years.
They lead, advocate, connect and collaborate nationally to promote the wellbeing and uphold the rights of older New Zealanders.
They are active and vocal on issues that impact older New Zealanders, and work to ensure older people stay connected with their whanau, friends, and community.
The national office has a small team supporting 28 Age Concerns across the country, each doing incredible work to connect people and respond to the unique needs of their communities.
Last year, 13,835 older people across the New Zealand attended an Age Concern programme promoting healthy ageing. These covered topics like eating well, demystifying dementia, grief and loss, enduring power of attorney and wills, how to navigate the health system, and much more.
Additionally, 5,387 people participated in Age Concern's fun low-cost exercise classes called Steady as You Go©, designed for people aged 65 and over, to help prevent falls through strength and balance training.
In the words of one participant: “It’s my confidence that has really got stronger. I haven’t fallen since coming and I had had two big previous falls.".
These programmes help people take positive steps towards staying healthy and reducing the likelihood of emergency department visits or hospital stays, which can have more serious impacts on their lives.
Around 1,700 older people also attended one of Age Concern's many digital literacy programmes around New Zealand last year. These are designed to help people navigate new devices and technologies, enabling them to maintain their independence and be connected online. Online platforms are increasingly used to share important messages, including health updates, weather alerts, and scam warnings, and are essential for accessing services like banking, supermarket deliveries, and health appointments. Age Concern wants to ensure all older New Zealanders are included in the digital journey and have appropriate access to information and choices, when they need it.
The digital literacy programmes ranged from one-to-one help, group workshops, drop-in sessions, structured 4-week courses, or presentations.
The Age Concern head office supports the Age Concern network across New Zealand to develop their own programmes to meet the needs of their local communities.
“I never learned about computers at school, and it wasn’t part of my life at work, it’s still all very new. It was nice to be able to ask questions that felt stupid and have them taken seriously,” - Digital Literacy participant
Age Concern also supports older drives to stay safe on our roads. Last year, 4,214 older drivers attended a Staying Safe refresher driver education workshop. For many, driving is a key part of maintaining independence, staying socially connected, and accessing essential services. The refresher course is an opportunity for older people to be confident their knowledge of traffic rules and safe driving practices is up to date.
Age Concern also provides a resource called Life Without a Car for those considering reducing or stopping driving. This free booklet highlights options for older New Zealanders to remain active and connected without a car.
The team at Age Concern say that one of the things they hear consistently is the joy from getting together with other people. These activities also help introduce older people to new faces in their community. Loneliness can stem from many causes - family moving away, the loss of friends, or changes in life circumstances. Research shows that loneliness affects not only emotional wellbeing but also physical health, memory, and even life expectancy.
Age Concern also offers a Visiting Service, resulting in 46,188 visits and 18,821 phone calls to lonely and isolated people throughout New Zealand last year. They also ran a campaign to educate people about elder abuse and neglect, operating a free information phone line to support individuals, their whānau, and community.
Age Concern New Zealand is grateful to everyone who chooses to support them through The Good Registry. "We thank all the wonderful people who have donated to help us promote wellbeing, rights, respect and dignity for older people. Many older New Zealanders have support and plans in place for their later years, but not everyone. Your gift enables us to ensure every older person feels connected, has positive choices, and is able to age well."
Comments