Age Scotland’s 80th Anniversary

That this House celebrates the 80th anniversary of Age Scotland’s work to support older people; understands that the first meeting of an earlier incarnation of Age Scotland, the Scottish Old People’s Welfare Committee, took place in Edinburgh in January 1943 to support the war effort and the wellbeing of older people in Scotland; acknowledges that the Committee’s aims were to gather information on the present position of the care and welfare of the aged and to raise awareness of the needs of older people; considers that, in the past 80 years, Age Scotland has made an invaluable contribution through its work in helping older people to live as well as possible, in promoting positive views of ageing and later life, and in tackling loneliness and isolation; notes that Age Scotland recently published the findings of its Big Survey 2023, which aims to take the temperature of what it is like to be an older person in Scotland; recognises that one of the events planned to mark this milestone is a parliamentary reception on 15 November 2023 to celebrate the contribution of older people and groups from the North Ayrshire and Arran constituency and across Scotland, including the winners of Age Scotland’s annual awards, and to hear about the charity’s latest research, which outlines the political priorities of people over the age of 50 and how they feel about growing older in Scotland; and wishes chief executive, Katherine Crawford, and everyone at Age Scotland continued success.