Older Adults’ Day Services

Hampshire Perspectives is the County Council's residents' forum

This report summarises key findings from the 29th Hampshire Perspectives survey, which focused on the organised activities - often referred to as Older Adults’ Day Services - provided for people aged 65 or over with social care needs in Hampshire. The survey was carried out to help us understand what people want from the service and ultimately to encourage participation.

The survey was completed by 648 Hampshire Perspectives members in October 2023. We focussed on two perspectives in the analysis:

• The views of those who were service users, or knew someone who was (around 10% of respondents)
• The wider views from the majority of respondents (of whom just under 70% were aged 65 or over, so able to give an age-relevant perspective on activities and needs of their age group)

Key findings were as follows:

• There was relatively limited awareness of, and involvement in, Adults’ Day Services amongst Hampshire Perspectives members. Almost half of those responding to the survey had no prior awareness of the services.
• Overall, there was a lot of similarity between the views of service users and their carers, and the views of those who did not know the service well.
  This suggests that the general public have a good understanding of the needs and wishes of older people with care needs, and the people who care for them.
• Socialising, spending time outside of the home, and getting mental stimulation were the most commonly desired benefits from activities for older adults. However, older people with care needs and those who care for them were more likely than average to mention the desire for a hot meal at activity sessions, suggesting this is a benefit less well recognised by the public.
• It was felt that carers mainly use the free time they get from older adults’ activities to socialise and take a break outside the home. However, Service users and their acquaintances were more likely to recognise that, in reality, the free time afforded by the Services would also be spent doing chores.
• Exercise classes are the most attended service/activity amongst adults aged over 65. Walking was in the top three for all respondent groups however lunch clubs were attended more by Older Adult’s Day Service users and their peers than by older people who did not use these services.
• While older respondents most commonly suggested that the Council should provide physical exercise-based activities, those with experience of the Older Adults’ Day Services were evenly split between suggesting physical exercises, socialising, and catered sessions most commonly, reflecting the value that service users placed on hot meals.