Age Friendly Community

According to the World Health Organization, an Age Friendly Community is one that is an inclusive and accessible environment that allows people to realize their potential for physical, social, and mental well-being throughout the life course and to participate in society, while providing them with adequate protection, security and care when they need.

 

Age-Friendly Salmo

A Community Initiative

In 2015, Council of the Village of Salmo committed to engaging the community in the development of an age-friendly action plan to ensure Salmo is a welcoming and fulfilling place for people of all ages to live.

The Village began this process with public consultation through a comprehensive survey, formation of the Salmo Seniors Working Group and community forum to establish priorities and an action plan. The Village is guided by the standards set by the World Health Organization, which recognizes eight key features to becoming an age-friendly community:

  1. Outdoor Spaces and Buildings are pleasant, clean, secure and physically accessible.
  2. Transportation is accessible and affordable.
  3. Housing is affordable, appropriately located, well built, well designed and secure.
  4. Opportunities exist for social participation in leisure, social, cultural, and spiritual activities with people of all ages and cultures.
  5. Older people are treated with respect and are included in civic life.
  6. Opportunities for employment and volunteerism cater to older persons’ interests and abilities.
  7. Age Friendly communication and information is available.

Community support and health services are tailored to older persons’ needs.

Salmo’s Age-Friendly Assessment helped identify priorities. The Age-Friendly Community Forum held in May of 2016 determined that the top 3 priorities for age-friendly improvements are (determined by forum participant vote):

  1. Social Inclusion – 24%
  2. Communication & Information – 18%
  3. Community Support & Health Services – 17%

The coordination of existing seniors’ services with a focus on enhancing and communicating those services, was also identified as a top priority by the Age Friendly Assessment Survey and the Salmo Seniors Working Group.

The results of the public consultation phase were combined into the Salmo Age-Friendly Action Plan adopted at the Regular Council meeting of June 14, 2016.

 

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