A new report has highlighted a postcode lottery when it comes to employment opportunities for older workers in England.
The Centre for Ageing Better’s research identified major regional work inequalities, with the South East having one million more – and around three times as many – employees aged 50 to 64 than the North East.
Its State of Ageing 2025 report highlighted that, as a result, the South East’s economy is benefiting from a £80 billion “older worker bonus”.
The charity’s analysis showed that a key contributor to this disparity is the substantial difference in employment rates among individuals aged 50 to 64 nationwide, with 75% of people in the South East in employment compared to 66% in the North West.
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According to the Centre for Ageing Better, the figures highlight the need for a targeted approach aimed at specific labour markets and the delivery of tailored employment support for those aged 50-plus.
Dr Carole Easton, chief executive at the Centre for Ageing Better, said: “Where you live has such a strong bearing on opportunities in life in this country, and that is certainly true if you are looking for work in your 50s and 60s.
“The odds are already unfairly stacked against older workers in an ageist labour market but that can be significantly compounded by the local labour market you are trying to find employment in.”
She explained that, combined with other factors such as poverty, poor health, or disability, regional inequalities made it extremely hard for people to find work in their 50s and 60s.
“The result is a detrimental impact on individual’s mental health and wellbeing, their finances and their ability to save for retirement,” Easton said.
She believes local authorities are best placed to understand the unique challenges and opportunities of local labour markets, and insists combined authorities and regional mayors have an opportunity to “tackle the barriers that older workers face and help unleash their full potential to the benefit of the local economy”.
Easton added: “Traditional employment support has not served people in their 50s and 60s particularly well. Employment support tailored to local labour markets with a specific focus on the needs of people in this age group could deliver so much more.”
The report, which will be published on Wednesday (26 March), also indicated that the proportion of people out of work because of ill-health was highest in the North West at 50%, compared to only one in three (33%) in the South West.
Nearly one in 10 (9%) individuals aged 50 to 65 in the South East who are not employed fall under the unemployed category, meaning they are seeking and able to work, while this applies to just 4% in the East of England.
Nationally, 6% of out-of-work individuals in this age range are classified as unemployed, while most are deemed economically inactive, where they are neither searching for jobs nor capable of working.
Overall, the employment rate for those aged 50 to 65 stands at 69%, trailing considerably behind the 85% rate for individuals aged 35 to 49.
The disparity in employment rates widens significantly in the North East, with a gap of 19.8 percentage points, and London, at 19.1 percentage points. In contrast, the age penalty is less pronounced in the North West (11.6 percentage points) and the South East (13.9 percentage points).
In the North East, 50 to 65-year-old disabled people face unemployment at twice the rate of their non-disabled counterparts. Only 37% of disabled people in this age group are employed in the region, compared to nearly 79% of non-disabled individuals – a 42 percentage point difference. Meanwhile, the South West records the highest employment rate for disabled people aged 50 to 65 at 53%, which is 16 percentage points above the North East.
Dr Emily Andrews, deputy director for Work at the Centre for Ageing Better, said: “Our State of Ageing report highlights two key reasons we need to rethink our approach to workers in their 50s, 60s and beyond. If the government wants to hit an overall employment rate of 80%, there are two groups of people whose employment rate lags behind this target: people aged under 25 and those aged 55 and over.”
She highlighted that the government has set out specific plans to improve the employment rate among the under-25s but not among the over-55s, and believes it won’t meet that target until it does.
“Work in later life has changed but government policy has not caught up. Where retirement was once generally a “cliff edge”, with people moving directly from full-time work to no work, transitions are becoming more diverse and complex. That is a significant change that needs to be accounted for,” added Andrews.
“Before any further changes are made to the state pension age, the government should undertake a holistic review of its approach for people in their 60s so that policy better reflects the needs of this changed reality.”
The Centre for Ageing Better is urging the UK government to provide additional financial assistance for individuals nearing state pension age who are unable to work, as well as tailored employment support for those beyond state pension age who wish or need to remain employed.
This proposal forms part of a broader review of the government’s strategy for people in their sixties, acknowledging the significant shifts in retirement patterns over the last two decades.
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