Independent Age
Independent Age (“IA”) is the national charity focused on improving the lives of older people living in poverty.
Through its grant programme, the charity also supports hundreds of local organisations working directly with older people across the UK.
More than 1.9 million people over State Pension age in the UK live in poverty and at least another million are living precariously on a low income. Living in financial hardship affects older people's health, intensifies loneliness and reduces quality of life.
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In 2024, Independent Age distributed c. 275,000 information guides and factsheets and had over 27,000 calls to its Helpline.
The charity delivered 125 training sessions to almost 2,500 people who are in regular contact with older people in financial hardship, such as GPs, council workers, police forces and social workers. IA's advisers completed more than 1,200 welfare benefit checks and identified £5.7m in unclaimed benefits that 1,067 older people were entitled to.
IA’s Grants Fund supports older people who are particularly vulnerable to the cost-of-living crisis. During 2024, this programme awarded £3.1m in grants to 19 organisations across the UK to support older people in financial hardship, and £2.1m in grants to 18 organisations specifically to support older women from minoritsed ethnic communities in financial hardship.