According to Eurostat, in 2022, 21.1% (more than one-fifth) of the EU-27 population was over 65 years old. This increase in the elderly population will result in an increase in the number of elderly people losing their autonomy. The evolution of the dependent elderly population will have an impact on the evolution of employment related to dependency. The latter is expected to grow more strongly from 2021 onwards, as many baby boomers reach the age of 75.
The healthy aging sector is therefore constantly evolving and growing with many new jobs at stake. Nevertheless, today, the sector is experiencing real recruitment difficulties. These difficulties are often linked to prejudices about the working conditions (parttime work, staggered hours, travel) and the lack of career development. Furthermore, we note that 26% of employees in this sector are over 55 years old, compared to 11% of all employees.
Careers4care would like to tackle that problem. Its main goal is to respond to the difficulties of recruitment in the field of personal services by attracting young people to the healthy ageing sector, training them and providing employment tips.
The objectives are to:
- Raise awareness to the profession of elderly care and healthy ageing;
- Attract young people to a career in healthy ageing.
The project is expected to deliver the following results:
- An escape game focused on personal services for elderly people to promote such careers.
- A training course and digital platform aimed at young people interested in the career of elderly care, to provide them with the knowledge, skills and competences for such a career;
- A best practice and resources booklet for educational providers to equip them with the tools to train young people in the healthy ageing sector.