International Day of Older People 2026 – “What’s on your doorstep”

It should be of no surprise that we are celebrating the successes of longevity due to better access to health and social care services. Therefore, on the 1^st October we celebrate the International Day of older people. The 2026 theme for this day is “What’s on your doorstep?” reflecting the influence of both the environment and the communities that older people live in and how these can influence and impact on their experiences of becoming older. The Centre for Ageing Better reflects that

“What’s available on our doorstep can influence how we age. The park, the GP, the social groups, the library, the community centre. But these things aren’t easily accessible for everyone.”

I think about my environment and the community that I grew up in and certainly shaped my early years, adolescence and my experiences of getting older. As a kid I completed “community service” with school as I was not a sporty kid of any type. This led me to becoming a volunteer at a day centre for older people, this was called “Benwell Day Centre” and it was based in the west end of Newcastle. That’s important as the west end of Newcastle was a very industrial area of Newcastle in its heyday and “Scotswood Road” or “Scotchy Road” is fondly referenced in the song “Blaydon Races”. The sense of community and the overall environment which nurtured this had become somewhat eroded due to the loss of jobs and industry along the River Tyne as well as the changing demographics of family. However, Benwell Day Centre was an example of something that offered a group of individuals a sense of “community” and in some aspects their “doorstep”. The important thing for me is that I and those around me found an aspect of community that they did not necessarily have behind their front door or on the street where they lived. Communities come in many different forms and the environments where they develop are equally as diverse, and as such so are the individuals that we stand alongside.

I find myself therefore reflecting on this following a recent conversation with Angela Catley who is the CEO of an organisation called WIGO (When I Get Old – https://wigo.org.uk/). She made a number of key points and challenges to my thinking and importantly my “professional language”. One of the most pertinent points she made was that “WE” are all getting older and as such we should be thinking about what does getting older mean to “US”! As someone who has moved into his 5^th decade it made me think about that very point, my children and their milestones, my own milestones of life and those that are still to come. I realised that what Angela was actually saying was see getting older with open eyes and an openness to thinking about what it means to you, and those around you, or in this theme those who may well be “on your doorstep!”. As the theme this year is “What’s on your doorstep?” and that makes me think about not only the physical aspects of what is around people and those who offer them support but also the emotional “doorstep” that can be created by those same people. I reflect on this and think about how this supports in my opinion the need for the promotion of empathic and relationship focused practice(s).  

Now as is customary in my blogs I wanted to consider this in relation to PRICE Training and our overarching principles. My first thoughts automatically refer me to that fact that PRICE is clear that what we is “Always practice within a human rights and person centred framework”; the importance of for me is that when look at the resources that a person has access to or in relation to the theme their doorstep then the first thing has to be what does that mean to me and for me. A rights based and person centred framework can and does enable a wider reflection and if we use that thought process to stand out on our “doorstep” then our experiences of getting older can be shaped by what I can access, or what support I may need to access the very things that can support me.

This nicely also leads me to the second of our PRICE principles where we focus on “Having an understanding and awareness of the needs of those being supported”. With this in mind I also reflect on how some of those who are experiencing getting older not being able to access the very things on their “doorstep” that would enable and support them to experience getting older not only positively but also on their terms. For some access to environments and communities that are supporting positive experiences of ageing are not just outside but can be inside their own homes. As such we need to be clear that having an understanding and awareness of getting older can and should enable us to develop an understanding of what I want to have access to, or in professional language “needs”. That doesn’t mean “needs” is a bad thing as we all have them, and as such the irony cannot be lost on the fact that we are ALL getting older and our NEEDS will change based on what we have access to and how we access those activities.

In conclusion I feel it’s important to say WE should all reflect on getting older, it isn’t just something that is happening to those we support! Let’s share those journeys with the people we support, the good days and the not so good days. Celebrate getting older as an achievement for all and as such I feel that we truly will be living in line with PRICE and its meaning of “Protecting Rights In Caring Environments!”.

Happy “International Older People’s Day” 2026