Leeds City Council adopts Age Friendly Employer Pledge

As part of its commitment to being an Age Friendly City, Leeds City Council is adopting a new Age Friendly Employer Pledge. By collaborating with other employers, this will help improve recruiting and developing staff of all ages. It also will help address barriers older workers can face in finding jobs and managing their health at work.

Established by the Centre for Ageing Better and launched in November 2022, close to 100 organisations are now adopting the pledge. Across the country these employers will be working to ensure they:

• Create an age friendly culture
• Hire age-positively
• Be flexible about flexible working
• Encourage career development at all ages
• Ensure everyone has the health support they need

Chair of the Leeds Age Friendly Board Councillor David Jenkins said:

“To be an age friendly city we need to make sure we appreciate the challenges that some older workers face. This includes the impact of health differences and how older workers can be supported to stay in work. We also need to ensure staff can access flexible work, which again is something older workers ask for – for example where they are unpaid carers.”

Deputy Leader of Leeds City Council Councillor Debra Coupar, who leads on employment, said:

“We need to ensure our policies and practices can cover all sorts of life-events people face at all ages. And there is a strong business case to be better at recruiting across the whole age spectrum. With pressure in the labour market, keeping and attracting older workers is good for us, for the local economy and for people themselves. Signing up to this pledge will also help to fulfil our wider strategies on health and wellbeing and inclusive growth.”

Senior Programme Manager from the Centre For Ageing Better Tracy Riddell said:

“We are delighted to have Leeds City Council on board. We are working in partnership with their HR team and they in turn are linking us to other employers in the city. Nationally the pledge is gaining real momentum. We would be really keen to hear from any employer, whatever size or sector, that is interested in finding out how the pledge can meet their skills and labour challenges.  We hope employers of all types will come together to ensure we are doing more to recognise the value of older workers.”

For more information on the pledge or to register your interest, please visit Age-friendly Employer Pledge | Centre for Ageing Better (ageing-better.org.uk).

Notes/further Information

1. Leeds City Council’s Age Friendly Board lead on the development of age inclusive practice in Leeds. Our ambition is to make Leeds the best city to grow old in and a place where people age well. This considers a range of domains including housing, travel, and health. Employment and being economically active is a key determinant of being able to live a longer and healthier life.

Age Friendly Leeds

1. The Centre for Ageing Better (CFAB)  launched its Age Friendly Employer Pledge last year. CFAB partners with Leeds to develop practice at a local level. Leeds is the first Council in West Yorkshire to sign-up. The Employer Pledge is a new initiative aiming to improve the working lives of employees at all ages and tackling some of the obstacles older workers may face

Age-friendly Employer Pledge | Centre for Ageing Better (ageing-better.org.uk)