There
are 19 million people aged 50 and over living in Britain today, 40 per
cent of the adult population. In
response to the growing number of older people in our society the Association
of Retired and Persons Over 50 (ARP/O50) was founded in 1988. Now the
UK’s leading social and campaigning membership organisation for seniors,
the association boasts 65,000 members and aims to represent their interests
as part of a demographically ageing society.
Turning
50 doesn’t mean the end of a healthy and active lifestyle, if anything,
you’re better placed than ever to continue contributing your maturity
and experience to the workplace and to spend more time doing the things
you enjoy most. In fact, right now there’s no better time to be 50, so
it’s not a milestone to be feared, but a birthday just like any other.
In campaigning for ‘changing attitudes to age’ we want to encourage people
to make the most of life and are dedicated to seeking results in areas
where over-50s feel that they are being short-changed by society.
Our
members receive a substantial number of benefits, services and discounts
and they actively participate in a wide range of social, educational and
leisure pursuits through our national network of 200 Friendship Centres. In this way, ARP/O50 promotes the third age
as a time of independence, purpose and opportunity.
Our
Objectives
The
Association of Retired and Persons Over 50 (ARP/O50) is the UK’s leading
social and campaigning membership organisation for seniors. As such, we
are dedicated to changing attitudes to age.
By
encouraging everyone over 50 to make the most of life, we aim to draw
society’s attention to the positive contribution made by the 20 million
active older people every day. We are also committed to redressing the
balance in those areas where older people may feel under-valued or under-represented.
Our
(non-partisan) social campaigning has earned the respect of politicians
from all parties and contributed to important legislative measures affecting
pensions, travel concessions, healthcare, benefits and much more.
Our
Members receive
Campaigning
Bringing
older peoples’ views to the attention of policy-makers, opinion-formers
and the media, and influencing the decisions they make, is vitally important.
Current issues of importance include age discrimination, travel concessions,
employment, provision of goods and services, long-term care and pensions.
Membership Benefits
For
an individual annual membership fee of £23, our members get much more
than pure representation through their membership of ARP/O50. A huge range
of discounts and services is also available which includes;
A
bi-monthly magazine Goodtimes containing
a wealth of articles and features on all subjects of interest and concern,
plus news and events details from Friendship Centres.
A
new website designed along the same lines as the magazine and with a Members’
Only section for exclusive member access.
The
Friendship Centres are a nation-wide network and available to all members.
They provide a valued source of contact, social interaction, activity
and involvement in the local community.
Discounts
on a range of goods from high street stores plus electrical appliances,
on cars, theatre and cinema tickets to name just a few.
Current
campaigning issues
Age Discrimination
The
association co-founded ERA, the Equal Rights on Age Group. This is a coalition
of all major groups campaigning for age discrimination legislation to
be put on the Statute Book.
Although
legislation against age discrimination in employment comes on stream in
2006, we aim to ensure that this is extended to cover issues like the
provision of goods and services.
Travel Concessions
We
have provided support to PARITY, (previously CESPA – Campaign for Equal
State Pension Ages) to obtain travel concessions for men at age 60 onwards
and gained free prescriptions for men at the same age. Plus we’re working
with the National Pensioners Convention to close loopholes in local authority
travel provision for older and disabled people.
The
Transport Act 2000 obliges every local authority to meet a minimum of
50 per cent of travel costs for the elderly and disabled, but this is
not being carried out in every case.
Our
organisation was based on the much bigger AARP in the US as a way of bringing
issues relating to the over-fifties to the attention of policymakers and
government. The US version has been going for more than 30 years and has
28million members. It is a very influential lobbyist on age-related issues
and has chapters all over the country.
The
main focus for both organisations is to ensure that the rights of older
citizens are not ignored the UK association also concentrates very heavily
on the social side of membership so that its members remain active and
enjoy a happy and healthy retirement age.