This pack contains the
following sections:
· About Age UK
· What we do
· Our story
· Age UK Enterprises
· Equalities and diversity policy
· How to apply
· Role description
· Our competency framework
· Terms and conditions
About Age UK
Age UK is the new force combining Age Concern and Help the Aged. The Age UK family includes Age Scotland, Age Cymru and Age NI and there are also more than 170 local Age UKs.
The creation of Age UK means that a stronger, leaner and fitter organisation is ready to deliver better outcomes for older people, especially during a time of very substantive spending cuts and unprecedented economic uncertainty.
In the future, it will be more important than ever for older people to have a strong champion working with them and on their behalf. Our aim is to establish Age UK as the pre-eminent organisation for people in later life – and we are pleased with the progress we have made in our first year and a half.
Our vision
A world where older people flourish
We help people enjoy a better later life – here and in 40 other countries – by providing life-enhancing services and vital support. We develop products that are specifically designed for people in later life, and fund pioneering research into aspects of getting older.
Our mission
To improve later life for everyone
We will keep offering information and advice to help and support people in later life, developing products that are specifically designed for older people, and funding pioneering research into age-related conditions.
Our values
We are respectful
We treat others as they would want to be treated.
We are inclusive
We work together, we involve and we consult.
We are positive
We welcome challenges and celebrate achievements.
We are realistic
We are open and truthful, whilst remaining ambitious.
We are solutions-focused
We ensure that what we do makes a real difference.
We are expert
We strive to be the best at what we do.
We are empowering
We support others to achieve their goals.
What we do
Here are some of the many ways that Age UK helps older people.
We provide advice
Because growing older doesn’t come with a manual, we provide advice and support to help make later life a better life. So anyone who needs information or advice on anything from health to housing can call our free national information line on 0800 169 65 65. It's open 365 days a year, from 8am to 7pm.
We campaign
We all want a fairer world – the feeling that something is unfair or needs to change is what prompts us into action. There are issues that touch all our lives – from pensions, to the NHS, to crime. They are the issues that make us think ‘hang on a minute – shouldn’t something be done about this?’ The good news is that something is being done about it. Age UK campaigns on issues that matter to people in later life and we get results.
We are local
The Age UK family includes Age Cymru, Age NI and Age Scotland. There are also more than 170 local Age UKs. These vital local charities work hard to offer a wide range of services to people in later life. Whether it’s getting started on the internet, keeping fit and healthy, or finding information and advice, a local Age UK should be able to help.
We fund research
Age UK is the only UK charity to focus research funds exclusively on later life.
Research is urgently needed to solve the health challenges of an ageing population and enable us all to enjoy good health and independence in later life. Our research provides answers and we’ve seen significant breakthroughs in dementia, falls prevention, stroke and incontinence, for example. We also commission research in a huge range of public policy areas, from poverty to health to consumer affairs – all with the aim of improving long-term quality of life for older people. The evidence from our research enables us to develop the right products and services and to influence national policies.
We are global
Age UK works in partnership with our sister organisation, HelpAge International, to improve later life for people in over 40 developing countries. We make certain that older people aren’t forgotten in disasters, providing food, shelter and emergency packages. As members of the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) we’ve worked tirelessly to support communities through natural disasters like the 2010 earthquake in Haiti.
We recycle and retail
We have more than 450 charity shops throughout the UK. They offer both new and second-hand goods as well as information about products, services and local activities. They also stock our popular advice guides.
We offer products and services
People in later life have specific needs and we understand them better than anyone. So the Age UK Group offers a range of products and services specifically for older people. For more information on these or any of our other products and services pop into your local Age UK/Age Concern, visit www.ageuk.org.uk/products or call us between 8.00am and 7.00pm on 0800 169 88 00
Our story
The new organisation we created in April 2009 brings together almost 120 years of combined history of working with and for older people.
1940: The Old People’s Welfare Committee (renamed the National Old People’s Welfare Committee [NOPWC]) is formed to help vulnerable older people.
1961: The Help the Aged Refugees Appeal (renamed Help the Aged) is set up to help older refugees. Later it expands to include UK projects including housing.
1970s: Age Concern begins to develop services for older people from ethnic minorities.
Help the Aged develops successful fundraising and awareness-raising initiatives, including Adopt a Granny and Gifted Housing. Twelve specially adapted minibuses are donated to community groups.
1971: The NOPWC is renamed Age Concern. As time goes on many local groups take on the name
1973: Yours, the first national monthly newsletter for older people, is published by Help the Aged.
1977: Help the Aged (Trading) Ltd is launched
1980s: Age Concern becomes a national agent for local job-creation and training schemes and highlights the plight of unemployed older people.
Help the Aged continues fundraising through national appeals including the launch of the Seniorlink personal alarm.
1990s: Age Concern and Help the Aged launch websites.
Help the Aged’s free telephone advice line, SeniorLine, and the HandyVan home safety and security services are launched.
1998: The Heating or Eating appeal raises over £1 million, leading to the Government’s decision to make winter fuel payments to older people.
2000–present: Help the Aged’s successful campaigns include the Just Equal campaign to end age discrimination and a campaign against elder abuse.
2000: Age Concerns form a federation of autonomous but interdependent organisations.. Age Concern England, as the national federation member provides support and leadership in areas like campaigning and policy.
2001: Help the Aged merges with Research into Ageing.
2006: Help the Aged launches Cows ’n’ Things, an ethical gift range to support their overseas work.
2007: Help the Aged launches intune, a company specialising in financial products for the over-50s, and engage, a business network helping companies to become age-positive.
2009: On 1 April Age Concern England and Help the Aged merge to create a new charity dedicated to improving later life for everyone.
2010: The charity is now known as Age UK.
We have launched a new website bringing together the separate parts of our Group, and have relaunched Age UK Enterprises, our financial services business. In 2010–11 Age UK’s Information and Advice services reached 6 million people, and we aim to grow the reach of our other services to match this.
Age UK Enterprises
History and background
Age UK Enterprises (Enterprises) was created in 1982, initially to address concerns voiced by people who had an association with the parent charity that their home contents insurance did not meet their needs. The company was established to address the failure of insurance companies to provide insurance solutions specifically designed for older people and the concept of addressing “market failure” has not only survived but indeed underpinned the philosophy of the organisation ever since.
The business model adopted by the company has always been to “own” its customers rather than to act as a broker, middle-man or introducer and hand them off to specialist partners. From its inception, therefore, Enterprises has been authorised by the regulators of the markets in which it operates and, in this day and age, this means ensuring that it complies with the most stringent of regulatory obligations and controls, currently administered and monitored on a regular and formal basis by the Financial Services Authority (FSA), Funeral Planning Authority, Gambling Commission and Ofgem.
At the heart of the FSA’s “doctrine” lies the concept of “Treating Customers Fairly” (TCF). A significant amount of time and effort is spent ensuring that Enterprises remains compliant in this area and recent efforts have been directed in gathering the appropriate management information in the appropriate format in order to demonstrate and prove that it is. The significant point here, however, is that the reason that Enterprises came into being in the first place was to ensure that its customers were treated fairly – and that concept remains the central philosophy of the company.
Having broadened its product portfolio to include motor and travel in addition to home insurance, the product portfolio now includes gas and electricity, funeral plans, social lotteries, personal alarms, equity release, annuities and legal services. Across all of these varied commercial sectors, irrespective of whether they officially happen to be regulated, the company remains true to its vision and mission, which summarise the corporate philosophy described above as follows:
A Social Enterprise
In 2010 Age UK Enterprises Limited became the first UK wide financial services company to be awarded the Social Enterprise Mark, for trading in a way that is beneficial to society and the environment. Age UK Enterprises Limited is consequently part of the Social Enterprise Coalition; an organisation that represents a wide range of social enterprises with the overarching aim of working in partnership for the creation of effective sector products, services and knowledge-sharing networks. This is to help stimulate and encourage growth, development and sustainability of social enterprises in England.
Financial overview
The companies generated revenues in the last financial year of c. £50m. The surplus net profits we raise through trading are gift aided straight back to funding the vital work of the charity. This surplus provides valuable unrestricted income for Age UK at both a national and local level. In the last financial year we paid over £21 million to Age UK and the local Age Concerns in gift aid and commissions. We also offer a free product which has no commercial return; over 140,000 customers have taken advantage of the Age UK ‘Life book’ to date.
Unlike the significant majority of income generated by the charity from other sources, Enterprises contribution is unrestricted and can, therefore, be used in any way the charity sees fit.
Despite the economic conditions the company has continued to grow and perform well. The company’s three year plan remains one of growth and Age UK has committed to significant investment in Enterprises over the next three to five years. Insurance will remain the most significant revenue generator together with energy and funeral plans. The companies have about 280 staff and operate out of premises in Central London and Ashburton, Devon.
Marketing activity will embrace new channels and, in addition, turn its attention to retention and cross/up-sell activity to complement the acquisition marketing activity on which the company has traditionally concentrated. Enterprises has developed a multi-channel distribution capability enabling our customers to transact by a proposition of their choice. A face to face proposition is made available through the Trading Alliance network, whilst UK call centres allows for telephony transactions. A Web based capability is also available and is a growing part of Enterprises future development.
The Trading Alliance
Age UK Enterprises differs from most social enterprises in that, in addition to direct and online sales and marketing channels, it also benefits from a strong retail presence and nationwide footprint. The structure of the Trading Alliance is fairly complex and, therefore, worthy of a brief summary.
There are almost 170 local Age UK’s. These vital local charities work hard to offer a wide range of services to people in later life. Whether it’s getting started on the internet, keeping fit and healthy, or finding information and advice, your local Age UK should be able to help.
A proportion of these local Age UKs, around 100 also work closely with Enterprises to promote and sell our products to their customers. These participating local Age UKs come together to form what is known as the Trading Alliance and its members are referred to as “TAMs”.
The TAMs were Enterprises first sales channel and the relationship between the two has grown and become more sophisticated over time as we has introduced new products and services. The TAM channel accounts for over 50% of our product sales and continues to provide valuable face to face service to customers. Research has shown that this is one of the reasons why we benefit from particularly high levels of customer retention.
The customer experience, service and care offered through the TAM channel is carefully monitored and replicated through our telephone and internet channels wherever possible.
A new distribution channel is being developed to provide products and services to the customers of the 70 non trading Age UKs and other like minded local charities. This channel will work on an introducer basis where customers can be signposted to Enterprises to fulfil their needs.
Product partners
In the context of Enterprises vision and mission and the concept of “treating customers fairly” described above, it is, of course, extremely important that product partners are carefully selected and managed. The majority of customer queries (including, in the case of insurance, claims enquiries) are directed to our product partners and it is, therefore, equally important that they share the Age UK ethos and understand and embrace the Age UK brand values.