THE ESSENCE PROJECT

Meals

Bundle contents: Meals, food, meals on wheels

An occasion when food is eaten, or the food that is eaten on such an occasion typically provided at home to support users. Some services provided by council or other local organisations to eligible people include meals at home (meals on wheels)

Evidence

Dementia, Disability and Frailty in Later Life – Mid-life Approaches to Delay or Prevent Onset [NG16]
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, London. 2015

This guideline covers mid-life approaches to delay or prevent the onset of dementia, disability and frailty in later life. The guideline aims to increase the amount of time that people can be independent, healthy and active in later life.

Who is it for?
Commissioners, managers and practitioners with public health as part of their remit, working in the public, private and third sector
The public.

Related NICE guideline:
Costs and benefits of increasing physical activity to prevent the onset of dementia: a modelling analysis van Baal P and Hoogendoorn M

How can Local Authorities with Less Money Support Better Outcomes for Older People?
Centre for Policy on Ageing Joseph Rowntree Foundation, York. 2011

Research shows that older people want and value low-level support – ‘that bit of help’ – but the benefits of investing in this are realised over many years, making it harder to prove impact and protect funding in the face of severe pressure on spending.

This ‘Solutions’ published by Joseph Rowntree Foundation provides examples of imaginative, affordable and effective ways of supporting older people’s health, well-being, social engagement and independence. It highlights projects with some local authority involvement whether as lead commissioner, subsidiary partner, or through small grants or seed-funding.

The projects demonstrate the importance of:

involving people who use support and services in shaping them;
investing in collective solutions, small grants or seed-funding for self-help groups, and developing local markets to provide the support people want and value;
greater emphasis on the assistance that older people need and choose, and their experiences rather than on conventional social care and/or services;
developing place-based approaches that reflect the whole of people’s lives, and delivering value for money, for example by including transport

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NIHR School for
Social Care Research