New CEO of Centre for @Ageing_Better promises collaboration and innovation
Orginally published on mediablends.com 9/09/2015
The new chief executive of the Centre for Ageing Better, Anna Dixon, makes a promising commitment in a first press release:
Collaboration is going to be fundamental to achieving change. We will work with existing experts, service providers and innovators to incubate new ideas and encourage the spread of those that work to improve later life.
There's no detail yet beyond background on the appointment and early research:
Anna joins from the Department of Health, where she was Chief Analyst and Director of Strategy. Her new role will see her leading the work of the Centre for Ageing Better to fulfil its mission of promoting evidence-based change that transforms how we experience and think about growing older.
> The Centre for Ageing Better is supported by funding which includes a £50 million endowment from the Big Lottery Fund. Forming part of the What Works Centres network in England, it will work across the country to strengthen and apply evidence around how people can age better. Working in partnership with older people and collaborating with a diverse range of frontline groups and organisations, Ageing Better aims to create real and measureable change.
> Over the past few months the organisation has been consulting stakeholders. It is currently working with Ipsos Mori to identify what older people believe are the key qualities of a good later life, and the barriers and opportunities to achieving these. Insights will be used to inform Ageing Better’s initial programmes of activity, details of which will be announced later this year.
… but there is an invitation to “join the conversation on Twitter @ageing_better”
I've written previously about the lack of any mention of technology for ageing better in the Centre's initial consultation documents, and as a result had some useful discussions with the Centre's interim staff. Now the CEO is in place I'm hopeful we'll see development on that front. Anna's promise of collaboration and innovation looks like a good start. Maybe we'll be able to tease out more on Twitter.