Elderly Britons bearing the brunt of strained health and care system, report warns

London — An Age UK report warns that elderly Britons are bearing the brunt of a health and social care system under unprecedented pressure, with many unable to get the help they need as the number of older people rises. The charity notes that while the demographic is aging, the time people spend in good health after 65 is shrinking, and access to essential services is faltering. For men, the period of good health after 65 is about 10.1 years, and for women it is around 11.2 years, with those in poorer areas faring even worse. The report links the trend to a mismatch between the growing need among older people and the supply of full-time equivalent general practitioners, as well as a decline in the share of older adults receiving social care support compared with a decade ago. Many older people now rely on family and friends for routine daily tasks such as washing, cooking and cleaning, rather than formal care services.

The survey also highlights a troubling gap in mental health support. Among people aged 65 and over, a notable portion experience common conditions such as anxiety and depression, yet a large majority of those with clinically significant symptoms remain untreated. Specifically, about one in seven individuals aged 65 to 74 report a mental health condition, with around two-thirds who have clinically significant symptoms going untreated. For those aged 75 and over, untreated cases rise to roughly 78 percent. The figures underscore ongoing concerns about access to mental health care within the older population and the broader pressures facing primary care services.

Alongside mental health challenges, the report highlights that some of the most vulnerable older adults struggle to secure dental treatment. In 2025, around 16 percent of respondents aged 65 and over said they had been unable to obtain a dentist appointment in the previous two years. In addition, about 28 percent felt the wait times for a GP appointment were too long. Analysts say these experiences reflect the toll of stretched NHS services on longer-standing care needs for seniors.

Caroline Abrahams, the charity director at Age UK, described the picture as one of health and care systems under pressure, with uneven outcomes across regions. She argued that the consequences are widening inequalities, as those with fewer resources face greater barriers to high-quality healthcare and social care support. The report emphasizes that many older people are losing time in retirement without the health and functional support needed to live independently, contributing to rising dissatisfaction and an acceleration of individuals turning to private services when affordable.

To address these gaps, Age UK calls for concrete government action. It urges officials to reduce emergency hospital admissions for conditions that could be managed in the community to under 100,000 a year, and to ensure that every older person diagnosed with severe frailty in the community receives a structured medication review and a falls risk assessment. The charity also wants the number of people delayed in hospital when fit for discharge to return to pre-pandemic levels—around 4,500 on a typical day, compared with current rates near 12,000.

Age UK further asks the government to bring forward the final report of the commission into adult social care, led by Baroness Louise Casey, from the current 2028 timeline. The aim is to lay groundwork for a National Care Service that can better coordinate health and social care for older people, reflecting the realities of an aging population and the budgetary pressures on local authorities.

In a separate advisory study, the Royal Society for Public Health found that more than a third of adult social care services in England fail to actively support residents in living healthier lives. The latest Care Quality Commission inspections show that only 462 of 1,097 providers—roughly 58 percent—were rated good or higher on measures of encouraging healthier choices and identifying health risks through routine checks or GP referrals. The findings align with concerns over the type and frequency of care visits, with many advocates calling for shorter, more individualised visits to be replaced by tailored care plans.

The Nuffield Trust think tank adds another dimension to the debate, arguing that NHS funding for continuing healthcare is distributed with an unfair regional bias, presenting families with a stark sense of the luck of the draw. Continuing healthcare is a package of health and social care funded by the NHS for people with a primary health need who do not require hospital admission, but the number eligible has fallen in recent years. From 57,216 eligible individuals at the end of June 2017, the total dropped to 52,008 by December 2024, a decrease of about 9 percent, the think tank noted amid broader concerns about equity in access to NHS-funded care.

The government has responded to Age UK’s report by acknowledging past failures and outlining steps to improve the system. A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said the government is determined to fix long-standing problems and is pursuing an independent roadmap to build a National Care Service with initial steps due next year. Officials highlighted immediate actions to support the social care sector, including a funding boost of more than £4 billion, funding to enable 15,000 home adaptations for disabled people, the most significant uplift in Carer’s Allowance thresholds since the 1970s, and the first Fair Pay Agreement aimed at improving recruitment and retention in the care workforce. The department also noted ongoing work with Baroness Casey to deliver a comprehensive reform agenda for social care across England.

Together, these developments illustrate a health and care system under pressure as the population ages and service demands rise. While policymakers debate the best path forward, older Britons and their families continue to navigate a system in which access, timeliness and the quality of care vary markedly by region and by income. The coming months will test the government’s ability to translate commitments into clearer, more consistent support for older people, and to align NHS and social care resources with the rising share of citizens who require help beyond hospital walls.