Mental Health and Wellbeing and Lifelong Learning for Older People

• Access to learning throughout life, which should be seen as a human right.
• To influence public policy for lifelong learning, this should focus not just on employment, but on social and personal development, and keeping older people healthy, active, contributing members of society.
• To reverse the continued negative stereotyping and massive under-utilisation of the mental capital of older people so that their mental capital is recognised as a resource for the benefit of society and for themselves.

By organising a seminar of key stakeholders to explore mental health and well-being and lifelong learning for older people.

• Older people
• Department of Health
• Department of Work and Pensions
• Department of Business Innovation and Skills
• Department for Culture Media and Sport
• Providers of education and care
• Employers

A  Mental Wellbeing and Lifelong Learning for Older People seminar was held in partnership with the government Foresight Office Department for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS) and the Royal College of Psychiatrists in November 2009.  The seminar addressed the issues of mental health and wellbeing and lifelong learning for older people.

There were some thought provoking presentations given, and the event gave the delegates the opportunity to contrast and compare their professional experiences of this topic.

As a result of the seminar a briefing sheet was produced as well as discussion notes from the day.

Documents
	NIACE Briefing Sheet No. 92 - Mental health and wellbeing and lifelong learning for older people (pdf)
	Mental wellbeing and lifelong learning for Older People - discussion notes (pdf)
	What learning has meant to me and why, as an older person, I continue to learn - John McAnuff (pdf)
	Sources of further information (pdf)

Web Links
	Mental health and wellbeing and lifelong learning for Older People

This work is part of on-going work to raise awareness of the impact of lifelong learning on the mental health and well-being of older people.