Aged spaces in an era of austerity

Food bank use by older people

Bibliographic Data

ID8362010
AuthorsHannah Slocombe (0000-0002-6859-3813, University of Liverpool, corresponding author)
Year2023
Volume55
Issue3
Pages407-415
Publication date2023-09-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueArea (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0004-0894 • E-ISSN: 1475-4762
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/area.12870
OpenAlexW4366824296
LanguageEN
Citations received7
References cited40

In the context of austerity and the COVID‐19 pandemic, this paper draws on 17 interviews conducted with frontline staff and volunteers to explore the use of food banks by older people in a highly deprived North‐West borough. Despite high levels of poverty amongst this age group, older people are infrequent users of food banks and it is their absence from these spaces, as opposed to their use of and experiences within food banks, that has often gained attention. By foregrounding this age group, this paper highlights different circumstances of use, generational dynamics involving heightened feelings of shame, and how food banks function as social spaces for older people. In doing so, this paper adds to literature in gerontology around spaces of ageing, as well as research on food banks, by highlighting how experiences in these spaces are differentiated by age. This paper advances discussions around the impact of austerity on the everyday lives of older people. Due to the timing of this research, it also gives insight into how older people and informal social spaces have been affected by the COVID‐19 pandemic

Austerity · Context (archaeology) · Economic growth · Economics · Geography · Loneliness · Older people · Political science · Poverty · Shame · Sociology · Employment and Welfare Studies · Medicine · Migration, Aging, and Tourism Studies · Psychology · Social Psychology · Urban Agriculture and Sustainability · Gerontology