A Roundtable Discussion
Free
Limited places, booking is essential
Thu 02 Oct, 18:30-20:30
This session is fully booked. If you would like to join the waitlist please contact us: info@fourthwallfolkestone.co.uk
Join Penny Shepherd (Ageing Without Children East Kent) for this informal roundtable discussion chaired by Sarah Lloyd (Fourth Wall Folkestone).
Whatever your age, bring your comments and concerns about Ageing Without Children to this roundtable. Let’s discuss what an “AWOC-friendly” health system and society would look like and how we can make it happen.
Increasing numbers of people are ageing without “next generation” support (“AWOCs”) either because they have not had children or for other reasons like estrangement, distance, death or a child’s own additional needs. And yet health and social care still assumes that there will be a family advocate to organise support and fill the gaps as we age. For many of us that isn’t true. One in five women born in the mid-1960s had no children – up from less than one in ten in the mid-1940s. 50% of women now reach their 30th birthday without giving birth and many will remain childless for life. We need to redesign society so that people without family support can age well.
Discussion points could include:
- The decisions surrounding not have children: precarious jobs, housing and relationships as well as from choice.
- The stresses on middle aged people in beanpole families trying to care for their parents.
- Practical issues that may arise when ageing without children: Who will speak for me or organise my affairs as I get frail? Will I be forced to stay longer in hospital or pushed into a care home because I don’t have informal support when I get ill?
- How / whether one can fix the “care economy” without that being regressive for women or unaffordable. What does that says about the social structures needed for the future.
These are just some examples of what may come up. We invite you to bring along your own thoughts, concerns, questions and areas of interest to this informal discussion.
This event is free but there are limited spaces so booking is essential.
This session is fully booked.
If you would like to join the waitlist please contact us: info@fourthwallfolkestone.co.uk
ABOUT AWOC EAST KENT
Penny Shepherd is the coordinator and co-founder of Ageing Without Children East Kent (AWOC East Kent), a group run by and for people who are ageing without the support of adult children, either because they never had children or for other reasons. AWOC East Kent provides informal peer support and information. They work with other local organisations to ensure that the needs of people ageing without children are included in policy, planning and services for older people.
This talk forms part of Still Sick Of It: a multidisciplinary series of creative events, talks, exhibitions and workshops exploring Women’s Health and diet culture.
Still Sick Of It is kindly supported by Creative Folkestone and The Roger De Haan Charitable Trust.