Grey and Pleasant Land?: An Interdisciplinary Exploration of the Connectivity of Older People in Rural Civic Society
The CCRI is working with the University of Plymouth (lead partner), Bournemouth University, University of the West of England, Cardiff University and Swansea University to investigate how older people living in rural South West England and Wales interact with their local community, and what social and economic issues are important to them.
The three-year study is one of a number funded under the ‘New Dynamics of Ageing’ programme. This seven-year research initiative, the largest research programme on ageing to date in the UK, is a unique collaboration between five UK Research Councils – ESRC, EPSRC, BBSRC, MRC and AHRC – supporting scientists from across the disciplines to work together on research which will benefit the quality of life of older people.
The rural South West has been specifically chosen as a location for several of the Grey and Pleasant Land project study sites due to its position at the forefront of the demographic 'age wave'. The South West has the most ageing population of all regions in England, which is growing faster than the overall UK population, and has the highest life expectancy of all regions. Rural Wales is experiencing similar demographic trends.
The study is researching the quality of life of older people in rural areas by analysing the extent of their involvement in their communities, leisure patterns and cultural interests, the barriers and opportunities for participation that they experience and their attitudes to the countryside as a social, cultural and environmental space. The findings about what triggers the participation of older people in civic engagement in rural areas are being fed into policy and practical recommendations about how to promote older people in rural areas as community assets rather than as ‘problems’ and create awareness of the contribution that older people actually make to their communities. For more information on the CCRI contribution to this project, please contact Professor Nigel Curry.
