Thousands of older people forced to skip meals due to lack of money

Over 155,000 older people skip meals because they haven’t got enough money to buy food, according to the charity Age UK.

New research from the charity has revealed that nearly a million people aged 65 or over have had to spend less on food in the last two years, with 1.4m older people growing vegetables to save money and over 500,000 rarely eating meat because of the price.

Many pensioners live on low, fixed incomes and the rising cost of food and energy over recent years has hit them hard.

Age UK found that to economise and save money, 1.6m older people are going from shop to shop to find the cheapest food and more than 1.6m will also shop for food in the reduced section or wait for discounted food at the end of the day.

As a result, the charity is urging pensioners to ensure they are claiming all the benefits they are eligible for.

Caroline Abrahams, Age UK’s charity director, said: “Poverty remains the reality of life for far too many older people - but there is help out there.

“Our research clearly shows the extreme lengths too many older people are going to, just to get by – but cutting back on food or traipsing from shop to shop shouldn’t be an acceptable ‘norm’ of everyday later life.”

She added: “Good quality food is vital to an older person’s health and wellbeing and should not be compromised by the pressures of other household bills.

“We’re urging all those who are struggling to make their money stretch to take the plunge and check what they could be entitled to. A simple call to our free advice line or visit to a local Age UK could put vital cash back into the pockets of the most needy.”

There are currently 1.6m pensioners living below the poverty line, with almost a million living in severe poverty and many thousands more struggling to pay basic bills, according to the charity.

Data from across 150 local Age UKs also shows a 360 per cent increase in the number of enquiries about food banks from April 2013 to March 2014.

Age UK has produced a new free Pension Credit guide to help older people on a low income claim the extra money they’re entitled to. The charity is concerned that many older people don’t know what help is available or are reluctant to make a claim because they don’t realise they’re eligible for support. While others feel too proud or embarrassed to claim, and some ‘make do’ because they believe the claiming process is too complicated or intrusive.

To order a free copy of the new Pension Credit guide or for further information and advice, call Age UK Advice free of charge on 0800 169 65 65 or contact your local Age UK.

It is also online at www.ageuk.org.uk/Documents/EN-GB/Information-guides/AgeUKIG50_pension_credit_inf.pdf?dtrk=true