What does the individual need to prepare for successful ageing? What information is required to maintain a healthy independent lifestyle for as long as possible? How financially viable is ageing for the individual? How can we (public, private and third sector) raise awareness about the realities of ageing i.e. the health and financial impacts of growing older, which most people are NOT currently preparing for early enough? Can we develop a campaign in the North East around this?

This theme aims to build on our understanding of different stages in the ageing process. Not all older people are the same. In terms of individual preparation for getting older and in terms of understanding the market opportunities and how to reach the market, we need to understand better the different stages of ageing and raise the profile of what this means for both the individual and business.

The theme aims to examine how the individual could contribute to a better understanding of the older marketplace, building a better understanding of the opportunities for business? The stages of ageing for the purpose of AdvantageNewcastle will be broken down into:

• Preparing for Older Age
• Active Older Age
• Vulnerable Older Age
• Dependent Older Age

For example, The One Core Strategy (Jan 2011), highlights a 10 year difference in life expectancy between men living in the most deprived areas of Gateshead and those living in the least deprived areas?

Are there lessons that could be learned by sharing relevant information about lifestyle differences in these areas? It is increasingly important to understand, not just life expectancy differences, but how we can improve healthy life years.