Journal Article

OP66 Engagement in volunteering and caring activities in the ‘sandwich’ generation in England: findings from the HEAF study

D’Angelo Stefania, Bevilacqua Gregorio, Walker-Bone, Karen, Dennison, Elaine

2025

Overview

BackgroundDemographic changes occurring worldwide have resulted in the proposal that retirement age be raised in many countries. We were interested to understand older adults’ current involvement in volunteering activities and informal care, as this may be negatively impacted by such a policy. This study quantifies the extent of engagement in such activities by people approaching retirement age and recent retirees in England, and explores the factors associated with participation.MethodsWe used baseline data from the Health and Employment After Fifty (HEAF) study, a cohort of individuals aged 50–64 years when first recruited in 2013–14. The outcomes included self-reported weekly involvement in informal (i.e. caring for family) and formal (i.e., volunteering) activities. Participants reported their employment status, working hours, biological sex, self-rated health, and perceived financial status, while age was derived from their date of birth.We used Poisson regression with robust standard errors to explore risk factors associated with involvement in formal and informal activities. Separate models were built for each outcome. Multivariate models accounted for variables that showed significant associations with the outcome in the univariate analysis.ResultsOf the 8,134 individuals initially recruited, 8,099 were included in the analysis (54% women, mean age 58.7 years, SD=4.4). At baseline, 18% and 22% were involved in any formal volunteering and informal caring activity respectively. Responders engaged in formal volunteering activities were more likely to also report informal caring activities (RR=1.10; 95%CI 0.99 to 1.23), independently of other covariates. Women, those in good health, participants who felt financially comfortable, retirees (RR=2.19; 95%CI 1.94 to 2.48), and part-time workers (RR=1.92; 95%CI 1.65 to 2.25) were all more likely to engage in formal volunteering activities. Similarly, regardless of other factors, women, retirees (RR=1.26; 95%CI 1.12 to 1.41), and those working part time (RR=1.31; 95%CI 1.13 to 1.50) were more likely to engage in informal activities. However, the likelihood of reporting caring responsibilities was higher among younger individuals and those struggling financially.ConclusionEngagement in formal volunteering and informal caring activities is common among people approaching current retirement age in England and participation in these activities often overlap. Although estimates are from cross-sectional analyses, full-time paid employment reduces the likelihood of participation in unpaid activities, suggesting that policies extending working lives may inadvertently reduce engagement in volunteering and caregiving in this group. Additional work is therefore required to investigate this further.

• Publisher: BMJ Publishing Group LTD
• Subject: Age / Employment / Older people / Retirees / Retirement / Risk factors