What we do
We help to support older people and their carers at times when they need it most, perhaps when they are feeling down and vulnerable. We provide information and support, also in community languages, to help older people deal with what confronts them. We visit people discharged from hospital and help them settle back into life in the community. We can help people work through bureaucratic tangles – and come out successfully at the other end!
We are also about fun and friendship, helping older people to maintain their health and well‑being, and supporting their contribution to society. We help to support, encourage and facilitate activities and enjoyment, providing social gatherings, confidence‑building training, inter-generational initiatives, physical activities, and opportunities for older people to speak up and have their voice heard.
We do all this through several projects and services. Please find a summary list following and click on the links to find more information:
Access and Inclusion
This service provides information and advice on a wide range of issues including welfare benefits, health and disability concerns, housing issues, community care and family and personal concerns for over-55’s, or those who support them, whether carers, relatives and friends. Advice can be provided in English, Hindi, Urdu and Bengali. More info…
Benefits Take-Up Service
This service works in partnership with the Housing Benefits section of Islington Council. It aims to maximise the income of Islington’s Older People through checking their Attendance Allowance, Pension Credit and Council Tax Benefit eligibility. Help is provided with benefit applications. More info…
BME (Black and Minority Ethnic) Elders Work
We run a mutual support drop-in group for Asian older people group at our Sotheby Mews Day Centre on Thursdays. Health, recreational, social, cultural, physical and educational activities can all be accessed as well as Advice in Hindi, Urdu and Punjabi.We also provide an outreach, advice and practical support service to help develop BME groups to support their older populations and link into mainstream services. More info…
Helping Hands volunteers
We train volunteers and match them with local older people who need a helping hand. The volunteers support the work of the Access and Inclusion and Home from Hospital projects, in particular, and offer a range of support, from short-term befriending to more practical tasks. More info…
Home from Hospital Service
This service helps people settle back in their homes after being in hospital. The help and support provided could include ensuring people are getting all the support to which they are entitled, collecting prescriptions, getting information, linking people in with local groups and activities, helping people do their shopping or just keeping people company. It is open to over-60’s for up to six weeks after they have returned home from hospital. More info…
Keep it Moving
Why not build up your fitness and have fun at the same time? We run low level dance programmes, including various ethnic dances, to improve physical activity levels of older residents in Islington. There are eight such classes running across the borough in 2007, each costing just £1 or less. To find out more contact Nelofur Wasti. More info…
‘Message in a Bottle’
Age Concern Islington is the main contact for individuals interested in this borough-wide scheme. It is a way of making medical and personal information about you readily available to the emergency services should you suffer an accident or illness. More info…
Open Access Project
This is a strategic project aimed at making it easier for older people from BME communities to use statutory services. The project will undertake practical research to identify barriers to take‑up of services, and will develop and pilot solutions to overcome these. More info…
Centres
Sotheby Mews and Drovers Centres are run by Age Concern Islington on behalf of Islington Council. Their ethos is to focus on fun, friendship and a range of enjoyable and fulfilling activities that enrich and extend the healthy lives of older people. Membership is free and for local people aged 60 and over. The centres also provide placements for unemployed people as a first step towards gaining training or work in the social care sector as part of the Opportunities for Volunteers project. More info…
Offers Designed With You in Mind [LINK]
Through links to Age Concern nationally, you can purchase through us a range of things that can help take a weight off your mind, such as gas and electricity supplies, home and contents insurance, car insurance, travel insurance, funeral plans, and charity flowers direct. These have all been designed with the needs in mind of those born before 1959. More info…
Quality of Care Reviewer Scheme
This scheme trains and supports volunteers who visit some of the most vulnerable people in society: older people in care homes and those who receive care at home. Our volunteers assess the users’ experience of the care they receive, and we provide feedback to the Council, so that they can take action wherever the service is falling short. More info…
Voice and Choice Project
Through friendly get-togethers and events, people aged 55+ and who live in Islington can find out more about their rights and local services. We help them raise concerns and sort out their problems, get support on making complaints, and build their confidence in speaking out and being assertive. We also provide English classes for older speakers of English as a second language, and are setting up Conversation Clubs for everybody. More info…
Volunteering for Over-50’s
We provide training, support and find placements as volunteers for people aged 50+ that suit individuals’ particular interests. A popular role is helping local primary school children with reading, or being a Helping Hand. Some of the other varied opportunities are helping asylum seekers and refugees learn English, working on a local city farm or helping out at local groups such as the Heart and Stroke Club. More info…
Volunteering with Us!
Over 150 volunteers support all our activities, from Seniors’ Centres to Helping Hands to admin. We welcome all new enquiries, so don’t be shy – there’s something for everyone! More info…