Community and our

Aging Societyby Neil Burgess

Neil is the founder of CuraHQ - a free service that helps bring family, friends and communities together to care for the people around them.

MULTI-INDUSTRY

Two-thirds of all people who have ever reached the age of 65 are alive today. This is the largest number of people

aged 65 and over who have ever lived, throughout history and all over the world. For some time we have been grappling with the question, “How will we care for our older relatives and neighbours in a rapidly ageing society?” It used to be simple - the younger generations supported the older generation. However, with a decreased fertility rate and an increased life expectancy, those days are gone.

With people living longer than ever, pensions in crisis, and national government and local authorities facing unprecedented spending cuts, there is no easy answer. If the situation continues, this crisis will only deepen over time. Tax revenues continue to diminish and state-led solutions, which for the past 70 years have provided comfort, dignity and care for people in old age, are not going to provide all the answers in the future, no matter which political party is in power.

There’s no getting away from it, we’re all in this together; and therein lies part of the solution: community. If we as families, social groups and communities

more readily came together to support those in need around us, we can start to share the responsibility of care. This will begin to alleviate some of the pressures from a care system already under strain, and more importantly, help the over six million unpaid carers who pick up the slack when the system fails.

Entrepreneurs, particularly of the social variety, are alert to the problem and are beginning to harness the power of digital technology to bring people together to develop solutions to what is now a global concern.

One such emerging platform is curahq.com, a new website that helps families, friends and communities share in the delivery of care for those around them. Users create a secure community, invite their friends and family to join, and upload the tasks they need help with. Community members can then see what needs to be done and ‘grab’ the tasks they

can help with.

Neil Burgess, Cura’s founder, explained: “Many of the six million plus unpaid carers in the UK are reaching burnout. Let’s take the baby boomer generation as an example. Many are exhausted, not only from caring for an elderly relative, but from also holding down a career as they struggle to provide for their own retirement. At the same time, many also help to babysit their grandchildren. It is a massive strain.”

Online communities, such as Cura, provide solutions to a range of personal and familial problems.

Those recovering from injury or fighting illnesses are setting up their own communities and asking friends and families to pitch in. Some are even using it to help organise childcare.

In the networked age, the communities around us represent a potent force waiting to be harnessed for the improved care of our older friends and family, along with other groups in need of support. Of course, no single group or idea will provide all the solutions, but given the nature of the problem and the power of modern technology to connect, enthuse and inspire, we may just begin to answer the question, “How will we care for our older relatives and neighbours in a rapidly ageing society?” We’ll do it together.

“Many of the six million plus unpaid carers in the UK are reaching burnout.”

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