Landmark Ageing conference to be held in Greater Manchester

The conference, on 16 February, is set to bring together a wide range of influential Greater Manchester leaders, world-leading academics and community sector innovators to discuss prospects for creating an age-friendly city-region.

The Greater Manchester Ageing Conference 2017, organised by the Greater Manchester (GM) Ageing Hub, is the first time an ageing conference has been held on a city-region level within Greater Manchester. The Conference will showcase Greater Manchester as an international centre of excellence on ageing and promote best practice in ageing research, policy and practice.

The Greater Manchester Ageing Hub is a collaboration between public, voluntary, community, social enterprise, and academic partners. The Hub works, as part of the GMCA and Greater Manchester Health and Social Care Partnership, to ensure Greater Manchester’s residents are able to live, work and retire in the city-region, while living as fulfilling lives as possible.

Greater Manchester Mayor, Tony Lloyd said: “Too many older people in our communities are left feeling isolated and we know the terrible effect that loneliness can have on mental and physical wellbeing. In Greater Manchester we want to end isolation and become the best place to age in the UK.

“We will harness all the talents of our city-region to ensure everyone can age with dignity, have a good quality of life and play a full part in society.

“This conference brings together our Universities, Voluntary and Community Sector, Private Sector and Local Authorities, and will take us one step closer to achieving our vision for an age-friendly Greater Manchester.”

Steven Pleasant MBE, Chair of the Greater Manchester Ageing Hub and Chief Executive of Tameside Council said: “The Greater Manchester Ageing Conference represents a real opportunity for us to lay the foundations for an age-friendly city-region. 

“There are examples of best practice all over the conurbation, with dedicated, enthusiastic practitioners and policy-makers leading some fantastic initiatives. But now we have a platform for all of this work to be brought together to create a holistic, integrated and coordinated approach to ageing for our city region.”

Keynote speakers include;

· Tony Lloyd – Greater Manchester Mayor

· Steven Pleasant - Chair, GM Ageing Hub & Chief Executive, Tameside Council

· Anna Dixon - Chief Executive, Centre for Ageing Better

· Geoff Filkin - Chair, Centre for Ageing Better

· Alana Officer – World Health Organisation

· Professor Chris Phillipson - Professor of Sociology and Social Gerontology, University of Manchester

· Jon Rouse - Chief Officer, Greater Manchester Health & Social Care Partnership

· Martin Vernon - National Clinical Director for Older People, NHS England

You can find out more about the conference by following our Twitter account @GMAgeingHub and #AgeingConf17