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Age Concern Auckland has written to Members of Parliament and party spokespersons from across Parliament, inviting them to visit our Avondale office and see first-hand the work we do with older people across our communities.
Every day, our team works alongside older Aucklanders, their families and whānau, supporting people to remain connected, independent and safe. Through this work we gain valuable insight into the challenges older people face, as well as the programmes, services and community initiatives that make a real difference.
Our invitation is an opportunity to share those frontline experiences with elected representatives, while also learning more about each party's priorities for supporting older New Zealanders.
We believe good public policy is strengthened when decision-makers have opportunities to hear directly from the communities and organisations working on the frontline. By opening our doors to representatives from across Parliament, we hope to contribute constructively to conversations about ageing well, social connection, elder abuse prevention, accessible services and the wellbeing of older people.
Age Concern Auckland is a non-partisan organisation. We welcome opportunities to engage respectfully and constructively with representatives from across Parliament, regardless of political affiliation. Our focus remains on improving outcomes for older people and ensuring their voices and experiences help inform future decisions.
Over the coming months, we look forward to welcoming those who accept our invitation and sharing more about these visits with our community.
An open letter from Kevin Lamb, Chief Executive, Age Concern Auckland
Tēnā koutou,
Across Auckland, older people are living with abuse, neglect, loneliness and profound social isolation. Many are largely unseen.
Their invisibility must not become an excuse for political invisibility.
Every day, organisations such as Age Concern Auckland work with older people experiencing financial, psychological, physical and other forms of abuse — sometimes at the hands of the very people upon whom they depend. We also see older people whose worlds have gradually contracted through bereavement, declining mobility, loss of social networks or disconnection from family and community.
These are not peripheral social issues. They are questions of dignity, safety, wellbeing and the kind of society New Zealand chooses to be.
New Zealand is ageing. Longer lives should be celebrated, but they also demand serious planning and investment. We cannot say that older people are valued while the services protecting and supporting some of the most vulnerable among them struggle for sufficient, sustainable resources. We would not accept an inadequate response to abuse because the victim was younger. We should not accept it because the victim is older.
Nor should loneliness be dismissed as an unfortunate but inevitable part of ageing. Meaningful human connection, visiting, social participation and practical support can transform an older person's life. Sometimes the intervention is remarkably simple: another human being turning up, listening, noticing and caring. But simple does not mean unimportant — and it does not mean free.
We are asking you to act and to champion:
This should not be a partisan issue. Abuse does not distinguish between Government and Opposition electorates. Loneliness has no political affiliation. Vulnerability does not observe party boundaries.
Older people should not have to reach crisis point before society notices them.
We invite you to meet with Age Concern Auckland.
Come and hear what we are seeing on the frontline. Talk with us about the pressures facing older Aucklanders. Hear where the gaps are, what is working, and where targeted investment and policy change could make a real difference. We know the problem. We know what works. We are already delivering it. What is missing is sustained investment.
Most importantly, work with us to ensure the experiences and voices of older people — particularly those least able to advocate for themselves — are heard in the decisions that affect their lives.
A society should be judged not simply by how long its people live, but by how well they are able to live in those additional years.
Safety. Dignity. Connection. Belonging. These are not extravagant expectations.
They are the minimum standards of a decent society.
We ask you to help make them a political priority — and we invite you to meet with Age Concern Auckland and discuss what commitment you or your party are prepared to make on these issues.
Start that conversation with us.
Ngā mihi,
Kevin Lamb
Chief Executive
Age Concern Auckland