About Independent Age
Independent Age is the only national charity focused on improving the lives of people facing financial hardship in later life.
Our Helpline and expert advisers offer free, practical support to older people struggling with their finances. Through our grants programme, we support hundreds of local organisations working directly with older people across the UK.
We use the knowledge and insight gained from our support services and partnerships to highlight the issues experienced by older people facing financial hardship and campaign for change.
“No one should face financial hardship in later life, and we believe there has never been a greater need for our work.”
Our history
Although we have been known as Independent Age since 2005, we have a history stretching well beyond that to 1863, when the United Kingdom Beneficent Association (UKBA) was established.
1863
Six people set up a voluntary society to aid the newly poor.
1911
The UKBA was incorporated under a Royal Charter, becoming the Royal United Kingdom Beneficent Association (RUKBA).
1954
We founded Elderly Invalids Fund (later called Counsel and Care).
1998
With the Charity Commission’s help, we concluded we needed to reach different groups of older people.
2010
We identified three types of poverty facing older people today: financial, information and social contact.
2015–20
Our vision took another step away from our 19th-century benevolent trust past towards an exciting future.
1948
We opened our first residential home and began focusing on supporting older people.
1970
After lengthy negotiations, RUKBA became the Managing Trustee of Universal Beneficient Society (UBS).
2005
We rebranded to Independent Age.
2011
In October 2011 Counsel and Care and UBS merged with Independent Age.
2024
We are now focused on improving the lives of older people in financial hardship.
Our strategy
There has never been a greater need for Independent Age’s work. More than two million older people are in poverty, with potentially millions more living with precarious finances and facing real financial hardship.
We believe that no one should face financial hardship in later life.
Independent Age’s history and expertise are rooted in alleviating financial hardship in later life; supporting people facing financial hardship has been our priority since our foundation. In the past decade, we have developed our expertise on poverty in later life with numerous reports, comprehensive information and advice offers, and our campaigns and communications.
Living in financial hardship affects older people’s health, intensifies loneliness and reduces their quality of life – so we can and must work to prevent and alleviate it. Poverty affects people of all ages, but it’s those in later life who are often on the receiving end of broad ageist assumptions and stereotypes about their financial situation.
The individuals who make up this group are often invisible, overlooked and unheard – and the dream of a carefree, financially secure retirement is anything but reality.
Our research and analysis identified certain groups of people aged 65 and over who are at greater risk of facing financial hardship, including:
- single people;
- women;
- people from minoritised ethnic communities;
- private renters;
- older carers;
- people with long-term conditions or disabilities.
At Independent Age, we want to make sure the voices and experiences of those facing financial hardship in later life are amplified. We want their problems recognised and taken seriously by decision makers. We want them to have the money they’re entitled to, avoid high costs, and live in a warm, safe home with the support they need to live as they choose.
And we will work tirelessly to achieve this goal. Our impact across policy campaigning, information and advice, grant-making and partnerships improve lives by increasing the financial wellbeing of older people in financial hardship – enabling greater choice and independence in wider areas of life.
We will always be there for older people facing financial hardship who are looking for trustworthy, independent information and advice. Additionally, we will financially support local partner organisations working with older people, through grants and practical support.
More than three million older people are living with limited financial means and experiencing inequalities that affect their quality of life, ability to make choices and independence.
Our objective by 2027
We will ensure older people facing financial hardship:
- Have sufficient income and receive the financial support they’re entitled to;
- Are protected from unfair or avoidable costs;
- Have the connections and support they need in their communities;
- Live in safe, secure and suitable housing with the care and support they need.
How we’ll do it:
- Work directly with older people facing financial hardship to improve their lives;
- Use evidence and our expert knowledge to campaign to change policies and practices;
- Support organisations financially through grants and practical support;
- Work with others to explore innovative ways of providing support and improving the lives of older people facing financial hardship.
Who we work with and for:
- Charities, community organisations, partners, businesses and grant recipients;
- Donors, volunteers and supporters;
- Families, friends, neighbours, and health and social care professionals;
- Policy and decision makers, media;
- People beyond state retirement age facing financial hardship, on a low income or in areas of multiple deprivations.
Our key activities
Information and advice
We provide free, confidential advice over the telephone, by email and and on webchat, and information resources for older people, their families and carers on issues affecting older people in financial hardship.
Grant-making
Across the UK, we work in partnership with local charities, funding them to support older people who might be struggling financially.
Policy, influencing and campaigning
We use the knowledge and insight gained from our frontline services to challenge poor care and campaign for a fair deal for older people – like a reasonable standard of living, fair access to information and an opportunity to contribute to their communities.
Our services directorate
Information, advice and support
- We provide a quality-assured free and independent national advice and support service, including our Helpline, specialist advisers, telephone groups, webinars and information resources, focusing on issues affecting older people in or facing financial hardship. Our aim is to enable older people to increase their income, reduce their costs, be connected to their communities and improve their housing.
- In 2024 we provided direct support to more than 25,000 people across a wide range of topics, including Pension Credit, Attendance Allowance; the cost of living, social care, housing the cost of living, social care, housing and connection with their community
- In 2024 we invested in our information and advice services, including expanding the size of the team
- We’re building our network of charity and commercial partnerships to ensure as many older people as possible know about Independent Age and the support we offer.
- In addition to direct support, we provide training to professionals and volunteers in the community to increase knowledge of key welfare benefits and entitlements, as part of our capacity-building strategy. In 2024 we trained 2,327 people. We’re set to grow our training offer in 2025.
Our values
Our values as an organisation and how we embed them in all we do will be essential to successfully delivering our strategy, and to the charity we want to continue to build and develop.
We are:
- Purpose-drive: the experience, needs and views of older people inform everything we do;
- Compassionate: we listen, care and take action;
- Expert: our work is evidence based and solution focused;
- Collaborative: we work in partnership to our maximise our impact;
- Accountable: we work with integrity and transparency;
- Inclusive: we value diversity and always treat everyone fairly with dignity and respect.
Equity, diversity and inclusion
To realise our mission and achieve the impact we seek, we need to ensure our services are accessible and inclusive for all and that we are working with older people from minoritised and seldom heard groups who are at greater risk of financial hardship – including single people, women, people from racially minoritised groups, private renters, carers and people with long-term conditions or disabilities.
To be best placed to deliver this we need diverse representation across our charity and a culture where staff, volunteers and trustees feel they belong, with practices that ensure equity, diversity and inclusion is at the core of everything we do.
Our EDI goals
- Goal 1: We will increase the voice and opportunities for representation of older people from our priority groups through our policy, influencing and external communications work;
- Goal 2: We will ensure our services are accessible to all and undertake targeted activity to ensure we are reaching older people in our priority groups;
- Goal 3: We will be an inclusive organisation where all colleagues, volunteers and trustees feel they belong;
- Goal 4: We will identify ways of engaging people from all communities in our brand, fundraising and partnership activities;
- Goal 5: We will undertake regular gathering of data and information to inform our work on equity, diversity and inclusion, monitor our progress, and identify where positive action is required.
Our finances
Independent Age is privileged to have strong reserves, which totalled £166.5 million as of 31 December 2023. The majority of our reserves are held as investments, and we also hold a small number of investment properties.
In 2023 our total expenditure was £12.5 million, of which £10.9 million was on charitable activities and the balance on the cost of raising funds.
We also continue to make regular grant payments directly to older people, although we no longer accept new applications for direct support.
We are currently preparing our annual report and accounts for 2024.
At the end of 2023 the Board approved our new fundraising strategy, which aims to increase and diversify our income to reduce the need to hold investments. This includes building awareness of Independent Age to help us grow individual giving and legacy income, increasing our events income and building a high-net-worth fundraising programme, while continuing to invest in generating increased income from corporate partnerships and trusts and foundations.