Becca Perl is the Senior Communications Manager at the Vivensa Foundation. They fund science and social change needed to help everyone to age well. Vivensa post on Bluesky and LinkedIn.
As the UK’s population continues to age, the implications for healthcare, social services, and society as a whole are becoming increasingly urgent. My colleagues at the Vivensa Foundation recently published an in-depth report that sheds light on the gaps, challenges, and opportunities within the field of ageing research. ‘Ageing-related research in the UK: a landscape analysis’ is the most comprehensive and recent analysis of ageing-related research funding in the UK.
Having the insights and recommendations from this report has enabled our organisation to look at how we allocate resources, shape research priorities and address critical funding gaps. It underscores the pressing need for targeted investment in research that addresses both the biological and social aspects of ageing. We used the findings to inform our Strategic Plan for the next five years, and hope others in the sector will do the same. We are advocates for transparency and collaboration within the research community, so we’ve made the report and underlying data freely available.
There were a number of important findings to come out of the report, some of which echo themes from the NHS Ten-Year Health Plan and the Chief Medical Officer’s 2023 Annual Report on Health in an Ageing Society. Here, we look at just five recommendations:
- Increased support at the ‘translational’ and ‘applied’ stages of research. We need to bridge the gap between fundamental scientific discoveries and practical healthcare applications.
- The need to address geographic disparities. The regions with populations that are ageing more rapidly are often underserved in terms of research and healthcare infrastructure.
- Focus on research into preventative measures. Research into preventative measures and their effectiveness could help to improve the quality of life for older adults.
- Ensure Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) in research. EDI is important across all stages of the research and innovation pipeline. It should be central to the design of ageing-related research to ensure that an increasingly diverse population is represented and that participation in healthcare research is inclusive.
- Prioritise funding for underfunded health categories. It’s important that areas such as ageing-related vision, hearing loss, musculoskeletal and respiratory conditions receive adequate funding alongside ageing-related cancer and cardiovascular disease.
Understanding where the gaps, challenges, and opportunities lie within the field of ageing research is a strong starting point for building a better future. You can download the report here and find the underlying data freely available here.
