Call for evidence for inquiry into intergenerational connection

The All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Social Integration has today launched a call for evidence as part of its inquiry into intergenerational connection. The APPG welcomes submissions from as wide a range of organisations and individuals as possible, with the deadline being Friday, 7^th September 2018.

The inquiry into intergenerational connection was launched in December 2017 to examine the ways that meaningful bonds can be fostered between older and younger people. The 2016 EU referendum brought to light stark political differences between different generations, while there is also an increasing geographical separation between young and old in which there is little day-to-day contact and interaction between the age groups.

The responses received from this call to evidence will provide invaluable insights from individuals and organisations across the country on intergenerational ties and divides, to inform the interim and final reports that the APPG will publish through this inquiry. These reports will set out a series of recommendations as to how policy makers, civic leaders and communities might bolster intergenerational connection and social integration.

Scope of the inquiry

The APPG’s inquiry has been launched in order to enhance policymakers’ understanding of issues including:

– The degree to which people of different generations in the UK share the same social and political values and understand one another’s views and perspectives; and how this is impacting on British democracy.

– The extent to which people of different age groups (the young, the old and those who are somewhere in between) engage meaningfully with one another in their neighbourhoods and social lives; and how this effects levels of trust within communities.

– The manner in which public policy decisions and economic issues have shaped intergenerational relations.

The APPG’s aim is to develop new, innovative ideas for building bridges between people of different generations, including through drawing on existing best practice and policy precedent from both the UK and international settings.

Terms of Reference

The APPG invites respondents to answer any or all of the following questions:

• Do you think the manner in which people belonging to different age groups interact has changed at all in in recent years? If so, what is the nature of these changes?
• What are the main barriers in today’s society to people of different generations sharing meaningful connections?
• Have you encountered, or been involved in, any successful projects or initiatives which strengthen ties across the generations? What explains the success of this project or initiative?
• What role do you think national, regional, and local government should play in promoting intergenerational connection? Is there any best practice – international or domestic – which might be drawn upon to inspire action in this regard within these different tiers of government?
• What is the role of the private sector in promoting intergenerational connection? How can private sector organisations collaborate with public sector organisations in building these bonds?
• How can housing and planning projects create opportunities for social mixing between people of different ages?
• How can public institutions and services, such as schools and those providing health and social care, be designed to foster intergenerational connection?
• How might policymakers frame political narratives and shape the public debate in a way that fosters intergenerational connection? For example, are policies designed to win over specific age groups detrimental to social integration?
• What role do you think intergenerational connection plays in enhancing economic justice between the generations? For example, does enhanced dialogue have an impact on the way different age groups understand one another’s economic priorities?

Responding to the Call for Evidence

The APPG welcomes submissions of evidence from as wide a range of organisations and respondents as possible.

If you make a submission of evidence to the APPG, please ensure that:

• Your submission is no more than 2,500 words in length.
• You state clearly who the submission is from, i.e. whether from yourself in a personal capacity or sent on behalf of an organisation.
• You include a brief description of yourself/your organisation.
• You state clearly if you wish for your submission to be confidential. If this is not indicated, the APPG reserves the right to reference the content of your submission in future reports and publications.
• You email your submission in Word or Pdf format to appg.socialintegration@the-challenge.org
• You submit your response no later than Friday 7^th September 2018.