Social care: need and receipt

This chapter reports on the need for and receipt of social care among adults aged 65 and over.

Highlights

Around a quarter of men (23%) and a third of women (33%) aged 65 and over needed help with activities like dressing, eating, bathing or toileting, called Activities of Daily Living or ADLs.
22% of men and 35% of women reported needing help with at least one activity such as shopping, cleaning and doing the washing, called Instrumental Activities of Daily Living or IADLs.
11% of men and 14% of women aged 65 and over had received help with at least one ADL in the last month, and 15% and 30% respectively had received help with at least one IADL.

Those in the lowest income group had the highest proportions receiving help and the greatest need of help.

Among people who had received help in the last month, 88% of men and 71% of women had received this solely from informal helpers, like relatives and friends or neighbours.
Help with ADLs was most frequently provided by a spouse or partner, followed by daughters and sons.
Help with IADLs was most frequently given by a spouse or partner for men (47%) and a daughter for women (38%).
Around a third of spouses or partners provided 20 or more hours of care a week.

The most frequently mentioned types of equipment used by older people were an alarm to call for help, a grab rail or stair rail and a bath or shower seat.
The majority of people aged 65 and over, 80% of men and 69% of women, did not currently use any form of mobility aid.