bme focus group...

BME Elders Focus Group

Early in 2004, voluntary organisations supporting BME elders and statutory organisations in Leeds, expressed the need for a Group with the overall remit of improving and developing the involvement of BME older people’s voluntary organisations in the development of older people’s services in Leeds.

The aims of the BME Elders Focus Group are to:-

Improve and develop the involvement of the BME older peoples’ voluntary organisations and groups in the city-wide partnerships responsible for developing older people’s servicesEstablish a coherent network between BME voluntary organisations for older people to improve sharing of best practice, common issues and concerns and enhance and facilitate the consultation process with statutory and other organisationsRaise the profile and voice of BME voluntary organisations and support capacity building through mutual assistance/communication, and facilitate the possibility of joint working.

There are currently 12 BME voluntary organisations who are members of the Group. If you would like further information about the Group, please contact: 380 4911or email: info@opforum.org.uk.

Black and Minority Ethnic Elders

More than 10,500 people from Black and Ethnic Minority (BME) backgrounds live in Leeds. They include people from African, Bangladeshi, Black Caribbean , Chinese, East European, Gypsy, Roma and Traveller, Indian, Irish, Jewish, Kashmiri and Pakistani backgrounds. This number is set to rise as those now in middle age reach 60.

BME elders face significant barriers of language and culture in accessing mainstream services. People from BME backgrounds tend to be concentrated in the most disadvantaged parts of the city where there is greater poverty and often a range of problems. Their health is often poorer than that of the general population and Age Concern England in their Good Practice Guidance on Aging and Ethnicity comment that ‘BME older people afflicted by chronic conditions pose an increased likelihood of experiencing higher levels of disability in old age and are at an increased risk of becoming dependent on others at an earlier age.’

Community organisations have been set up to help meet the needs of elders for services such as culturally appropriate food, companionship, information and advocacy in mother tongue. These organisations are trusted by their users and are able to reach in to communities often regarded as ‘hard to reach’ by mainstream service providers.

Major Success

Using funding from Help the Aged, the Group ran a very successful project to raise awareness of risks of falls among BME elders and falls prevention services in Leeds.

An arts project ran in collaboration with the Playhouse Heydays Project, involving elders from different backgrounds in learning about art and craft traditions from different cultures.

‘Celebrate Our Elders’ is a display for use by members of the BME Focus Group to showcase the work which they do with their elders and to raise awareness of opportunities for volunteering.