Liverpool will play host to a major conference this week which aims to celebrate the city’s success at becoming an age-friendly place to live, work and visit.
The UK Network of Age-Friendly Communities conference will take place on Wednesday 20 March at The Bluecoat, on School Lane.
Organised by the Centre for Ageing Better, the event will see delegates from organisations from across the country converge on Liverpool to share some of the great work going on to improve the lives of older people both now and in the future.
The event will be opened by Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson and will include presentations, workshops and keynote speeches.
The themes for the conference will include; how older people can be involved in shaping age-friendly communities and how they can use their voices to influence policies and services.
It will examine older peoples’ experience of public transport and will also include a series of walking tours around Liverpool ONE to illustrate how accessible the city centre can be for older people.
There will be a number of supporting events surrounding the conference. On Tuesday 19 March there will be a pre-event reception with a special guest appearance from Liverpool’s favourite bingo-show the now-legendary Bongo’s Bingo.
The Bongo’s band will be putting on a special performance and explaining their partnerships across the city. They group will showcase their ever-popular events and detail how they make them accessible and inclusive for everyone.
Whilst on Thursday 21 March, The Royal Court Theatre will be hosting an ageing better showcase performed by older adults.
Liverpool is a member of the World Health Organisation’s network of ‘age-friendly’ cities.
The concept of an age-friendly city revolves around organisations working together to improve the quality of life for people as they get older. It looks at issues such as outdoor spaces and buildings, transport, housing and social participation.
Liverpool City Council’s Mayoral Lead for Older People, Cllr Jeremy Wolfson said: “Our city already has a great story to tell about its approach to active ageing. Hosting the conference is a real opportunity to highlight some of the excellent work that is going on across the city to enhance the lives of older people as well as learning from the successes of other cities. In my role as Mayoral Lead, I have met many people and organisations who make a real difference to the lives of older people and I commend them for their passion and dedication.”
Some of the great work going on in Liverpool includes the city council working in partnership with Liverpool Airport and the city’s Dementia Action Alliance to provide support for older people at the airport from check-in to boarding.
Tommy Dunne, who is a member of Liverpool’s Dementia Action Alliance’s transport committee and is living with dementia, said: “It’s a wonderful opportunity for Liverpool to be hosting the conference and a real chance for us to showcase some of the things we have already achieved by working together. Growing older is something we all have to accept, so it is important we ensure that our city is future-proofed enough to ensure that people can have the same quality of life whatever their age. We want Liverpool to lead the way when it comes to being age-friendly and we are hoping this event will help to do just that through learning from others and sharing what we do.”
Jonny Bongo added: “Bongo’s Bingo is proudly an inclusive environment for everyone at our shows, and we are proud to be part of Liverpool’s Age-Friendly Conference.”
Pic cap: Full House: Bingo sensation Jonny Bongo who is supporting Liverpool’s Age-Friendly Conference (pic credit James Chapman)
