Ageing: what do we actually know? - Mr Johannes Hechler

Is the population really getting older? If so, why? How long do people stay healthy? Are there ever more pensioners and fewer payers? Or do people just work longer? Every day you get as many answers as there are newspapers. Claims and counter-claims swirl around, based on anecdotes, rushed research and personal bias, all disguised by skilful rhetoric. Luckily there is the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The Office for National Statistics produces the hard evidence. You may know the ONS from the Census in 2011 or the monthly economic figures, but the ONS also estimates the number of old people in the UK and survey their behaviour. Our research is part of an international statistics system so we can compare the UK to other countries. The talk will show what type of data actually exist, what we can say about the questions above – and what we cannot. This talk was part of the Hope & Hops: the science of society event organised by NCRM, CPC and ADRC at the University of Southampton. This event was included in the the ESRC Festival of Social Science 2017. bit.ly/HopeAndHops