We’re all aware that the population is ageing. There are already 11 million people over the age of 65 in England and that number is rising. Public discussion about older people is varied and shifting. Some commentators would have us believe that the older population is a burden putting pressure on health services and housing, others that older people are integral to social cohesion or simply essential to looking after children in an age of high childcare costs.

This spring, a group of organisations is calling on the government to appoint a commissioner for older people and ageing. This role already exists in Wales and in Northern Ireland.

In Wales, the commissioner’s role is to promote awareness of the rights and interests of older people, challenge discrimination, encourage best practice in the treatment of older people, and review the law affecting the interests of older people.

Re-engage has joined the call for a Commissioner for Older People and Ageing because we believe that it’s a role that can develop alongside our ageing population and ensure that older people experience improved life experiences. The areas of health and care will inevitably be prominent, of course, but we hope that a champion for older people’s rights will recognise the pervasive discrimination against older people and ageing in our public discourse and seek support to make change in how we talk about, and treat, older and ageing generations.

At Re-engage we contact thousands of older people each year to hear directly from them about their lives, their experiences, and their views. We learn a huge amount about people in their late 70s and older, most of whom have little access to social networks and are rarely consulted by the people and institutions that are planning and making changes in the society around us all.

We’ll continue to support our sister charities in their call for a Commissioner, and we’re standing by to make sure that the voices of the thousands of older people who are part of Re-engage are heard by anyone who takes up the role.