Professor Ann Hemingway (FHSS) and Professor Adele Ladkin (FM) have recently been successful in gaining EU funding (2 SEAS strand) for a project entitled Staying Active and Independent for Longer (SAIL). This is a three and a half year project piloting eleven different social innovations in three countries focused on helping older people to stay active and independent for longer. The project partners come from the public sector, third sector, universities and SME’s, and include the following.
- HZ University of Applied Sciences
- Economic Impuls Zeeland
- GGD Zeeland
- SMWO/SportZeeland
- Westtoer
- Norfolk County Council
- Bournemouth University
- University of East Anglia
- AFEJI
- City of Ostend
- University of Picardie
Coastal regions in the 2 Seas Area have to deal with specific challenges in relation to ageing as they are confronted with a particular mix of ageing people. This not only includes local elderly, but also the influx of ageing newcomers and tourists of an increasing average age. As this population puts pressure on health and social care systems, it is essential to enable them to stay active and independent for longer, to improve their wellbeing and quality of life to reduce costs and pressures on care systems.
Professor Hemingway (FHSS) and Professor Ladkin (FM) at BU are running the international feasibility study for this multi million pound project. This project represents cross-faculty research success combining public health and tourism expertise at BU.