8 Pages
2039 Words
Introduction Of A Retirement Community Based On Self Identity And Life Course Perspective?
The Why Do People Choose To Live To A Retirement Community Based On Self Identity And Life Course Perspective?
Retirement is that phase of life when old people can feel both excited and apprehensive regarding the choices they are to make in the future. The retirement community is a community developed for the old and elder people in the society who are generally 55 years above and basically are retired from their daily work. It has been noticed that seniors of society are very much engaged in the social works of society. This engagement in social work has helped them to provide mental, physical and emotional benefits. In countries like the UK, the retirement revolution has started taking palace which has gained a lot of attention from business leaders and also from the senior citizens of the country. The countries like New Zealand, USA and Australia have already created retirement societies and have been built various senior living communities which have been represented as a model for the growth of the UK's market.
Feeling overwhelmed with your assignments? Take a breather and let New Assignment Help ease your burden! Our professional team provides unmatched assignment writing services in the UK, guaranteeing academic success. Explore our free assignment samples for inspiration and guidance.
Demand of retirement communities in the UK
In recent years it has been observed that retirement communities a living have been becoming one of the popular ways of life for many of the older people in society. The covid 19 pandemic has changed a lot of things in everyone's life and has also impacted seniors a lot. The pandemic has shed light on the choices the older generation of society can make about themselves as being independent and following the senior living style independently. According to a survey it has been estimated that the number of retirement homes in the county has been got doubled in the past 5 years (Kunkel & Settersten, 2021). The pandemic has led the people of the UK to think and concentrate on their lifestyles a little more and reaccess their way of their living. Apart from this, the pandemic era has also provided seniors and old aged people sufficient time to think about their quality of life and how and where they should enjoy their retirement period.
Studies from the last few years have revealed that the covid 19 pandemic has led older people in society to be certain about their future (Bengtsson & Flisbäck, 2021). According to the report from “Age UK,” it has been revealed that older people are the ones who have mostly suffered loneliness, isolation and lack of social activity. This suffering has influenced older people of society to choose retirement communities as their future choices.
The older people of the society have expressed their feeling of living independently and availing all the social choices on their doorstep. The older p[eople has also expressed that fact to match with the help option and support if they need it. In accordance with the report created by the specialist of the property Knight Frank”, the private retirement market has decided to set its growth by the year 2022 by 50%. It has also been observed that the UK market are accounting for approximately 54% of the new buildings that are being developed in the country since the year 2000. It has been observed that the estimated annual demand for retirement properties is 30,000 U.S dollars (Fowler-Davis et al. 2021). However, it has been also estimated that the total number of people who are being downsized over the last 65 years is approximately 4 million and needs to grow over 2043 by an approximate rate of 43%. Hence, from the research and analysis, it has been observed that the UK marketing sectors for the retirement housing sectors are largely unrecognized with only one-in-five people over 65 saying they are very familiar with the retirement living category which is described as living in an apartment and belonging of a community whilst still living independently behind your own front door.
According to a survey report on the UK retirement community, it has been found the number of older people are being increased in the last few years who have been enquiring about retirement homes and communities to move in. Apart from that, they are also in search of such retirement homes which have been providing support and care to older people “such as extra caring houses and villages”.
In a survey by the ARCO, it has been found that the 85% of the organisations have achieved sales and attended to the higher sales producer for the year 2019 (French, McKillop & Sharma, 2018). It has also been found that the 55% of the people who were responding to the sales and lettings were approximately 30% higher than that of 2019. The respondents also supported the organisation and stated that the sales were approximately 50% higher than the previous.
Reasons for choosing retirements communities
Older people have made lots of reasons for choosing retirement homes and communities for their future lifestyle and living. People need more independent living and should get more assisted living facilities such as apartments (Harding et al. 2018). The older people will get to create their own social groups which will make them more mentally free and could enjoy their life more independently.
There are various benefits old people get from living in retirement homes. The retirement homes are purposely built for the older people of the society which has offered various lifestyle facilities to the older people and benefits towards enjoying their days with the fullest enjoyment.
- Forming a “strong sense of connection' with the community. The retirement villages and homes offer older people the opportunity to interact with people and connect with them of their own age. The connection is totally mutual without being dependent on someone else pocket (Daffern, Balmer & Brereton, 2021). The idea of creating these retirement homes and villages has reduced the social isolation of the older generations in the UK, which has been becoming a basic problem in UK society. Older people get it easier to make friends and more connections which have been proven to be more meaningful to them. According to research, it has been found that social isolation among the older generations is becoming one of the leading causes of hospitalisation in the UK.
- The retirement homes and villages provide a lifestyle to the older generations of the UK which needs low maintenance and also gives very less pressure on the older people of the society. In the UK most teenagers and children leave their parents after attending adulthood. They have a mindset to leave alone and emphasise their own lifestyle. This mindset of the younger generation of society has left the older generation people behind and they started to feel isolated. These retirement homes and villages have helped older people to live their life in a stress-free environment without so much maintenance (Darton, 2022). These retirement villages provide the older people of society with help to easily live their life without any difficulty and stress. Many old people found it difficult and it's obvious for the older people to maintain a household at the age of 55 and above.
- Maintaining an active lifestyle: there are various benefits of an active life. The retirement villages and homes have been developed to maintain an active lifestyle of the old aged people (Smith et al. 2022). The old people in this kind of retirement community are offered a wide range of activities within these places such as physical and mental activities. Apart from these, older people get to access the things like a golf course.
- Retirement homes provide safety and security to old age people. It has been one of the priorities of older people to get a higher level of security. The retirement homes and villages have been designed in such a way that provides older people to get security in sectors of health and physical (Gray & Worlledge, 2018). Security is one of the fundamental rights of people specified in old age. Apart from this, most of the retirement homes and villages in the UK have arranged a wide range of security features such as fences, gates, cameras and lights. An emergency service has also been arranged by a few of the retirement homes.
Summary
From the overall study, it can be said that older people in the UK mostly face and suffer from social isolation. It has been found that social isolation among the older generations is becoming one of the leading causes of hospitalisation in the UK. the covid 19 pandemic has also impacted the older generation a lot hence they have decided and become more interested in moving to retirement homes and communities. The covid 19 pandemic has changed a lot of things in everyone's life and has also impacted seniors a lot. The pandemic has shed light on the choices the older generation of society can make about themselves as being independent and following the senior living style independently. According to a survey it has been estimated that the number of retirement homes in the county has been got doubled in the past 5 years. This choice of the older people to spend their retirement in a separate place will help them to lead an independent life.
References
- Bengtsson, M., & Flisbäck, M. (2021). Illuminating existential meaning: A new approach in the study of retirement. Qualitative Sociology Review, 17(1), 196-214 Retrieved on: 08 October 2022 from: http://www.czasopisma.uni.lodz.pl/qualit/article/view/9279
- Carr, S., & Fang, C. (2022). “We Are Good Neighbors, But We Are Not Carers!”: Lived Experiences of Conflicting (In) dependence Needs in Retirement Villages Across the United Kingdom and Australia. The Gerontologist, 62(7), 974-983. Retrieved on: 08 October 2022 from: https://academic.oup.com/occmed/article/69/5/336/5516045
- Daffern, H., Balmer, K., & Brereton, J. (2021). Singing together, yet apart: the experience of UK choir members and facilitators during the Covid-19 pandemic. Frontiers in psychology, 12, 624474. Retrieved on: 08 October 2022 from: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.624474/full
- Darton, R. A. (2022). Extra care housing: The current state of research and prospects for the future. Social Policy and Society, 21(2), 292-303. Retrieved on: 08 October 2022 from: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/social-policy-and-society/article/extra-care-housing-the-current-state-of-research-and-prospects-for-the-future/F9E6D9FAB1504A7DE01842B7C0A93F61
- Fowler-Davis, S., Young, R., Maden-Wilkinson, T., Hameed, W., Dracas, E., Hurrell, E., ... & Copeland, R. (2021). Assessing the acceptability of a co-produced long COVID intervention in an underserved community in the UK. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(24), 13191. Retrieved on: 08 October 2022 from: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/24/13191
- French, D., McKillop, D., & Sharma, T. (2018). What determines UK housing equity withdrawal in later life?. Regional Science and Urban Economics, 73, 143-154. Retrieved on: 08 October 2022 from: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0166046218300541
- Gray, A., & Worlledge, G. (2018). Addressing loneliness and isolation in retirement housing. Ageing & Society, 38(3), 615-644. Retrieved on: 08 October 2022 from: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/ageing-and-society/article/abs/addressing-loneliness-and-isolation-in-retirement-housing/59EAF68079ED5A83AAB792D0DEE174DA
- Harding, A., Parker, J., Hean, S., & Hemingway, A. (2018). Supply-side review of the UK specialist housing market and why it is failing older people. Housing, Care and Support. Retrieved on: 08 October 2022 from: https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/HCS-05-2018-0006/full/html
- Kunkel, S. R., & Settersten Jr, R. (2021). Aging, society, and the life course. Springer Publishing Company. Retrieved on: 08 October 2022 from: https://www.springerpub.com/behavioral-sciences/aging-society-and-the-life-course-sixth-edition-9780826180346.html
- Smith, M., Brown, M., Ritchie, L., Papadopoulou, C., & Tolson, D. (2022). Living with dementia in supported housing: A systematic review and thematic synthesis of qualitative research. Health & Social Care in the Community, 30(3), e589-e604. Retrieved on: 08 October 2022 from: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/hsc.13618