Page 18 - PT Winter 2021-2022

Peter Brierley

The elderly:

a cornerstone

of the Church?

n this millennium, the UK population is in proportion means increasing numbers from 750
growing ‘age-heavy’. Whilst back in 2000, million in 2010 to 2 billion by 2050. Perhaps, though,
Isome 15% of the population was 65 or over in the light of sustainability issues featuring widely in
in the UK, ten years later that figure had grown climate change responsibilities as well as acceptance and
inevitability of contraceptives, the global situation is not so
to 17%, and by 2020 it had reached 19% of the surprising after all. Photo Credit: istockphoto.com/PixelCatchers
population. Among English churchgoers, however, the proportions
It is already obvious from the pandemic are higher. In the year 2000, 25% of those attending were
crisis that the Government has real problems 65 or over, by 2010 it was 30%, and by 2020 it had reached
providing enough care homes for the many 36%. The huge acceleration is due in part to the fact that
who need their facilities as well as staffing them elderly churchgoers continue to come to church despite
getting older, but mainly because there are too few younger
adequately. people joining to compensate.
If current trends continue, then by 2030 it could be two-
So the increasing numbers of elderly people are already fifths, 41%, who will be aged 65 or over. The seriousness of
posing a dilemma! And the numbers affect all sections the situation is shown in Figure 1 which gives the statistics
of society. The latest figures show that over 10% of the for England. Of those 65 or over, two-fifths are male, the
‘elderly’ are now working beyond 65 years of age. majority – three-fifths – being female.
It might be asked, ‘What constitutes old age?’ An Fig 1: Those over 65, England, 2000-2030
interesting question in a major survey of 2,200 people in
2008 found that just over a third (33%) of the sample put
70 as the time when people become ‘seniors,’ and a further
quarter (23%) put it later.
In 2020 there were 10.7 million people 65 and over in
England, but only 10.2 million children under 15. Too
many grandparents – or perhaps too few grandchildren!
(Although of course, a number of 65 and overs will not
necessarily be grandparents).

A global trend
But what may surprise us is that this is a global
phenomenon. In 2010, 11% of the world’s population
was over 60; by 2050 it will be 22%, this doubling

18 The Plain Truth Winter 2021-2022 Find us online at www.plain-truth.org.uk