Overview

This project is funded under the ESRC Inclusive Ageing call.

Resources and experiences accumulate across the life course, influencing later life outcomes. For some older individuals from minority ethnic communities, later life comes with a higher risk of poverty compared to their White British counterparts.

This research aims to improve the inclusivity of individuals from minority ethnic communities in pension policy planning, and address a gap in our understanding of the socio-economic factors affecting pension protection among current and future generations of older individuals from minority ethnic communities in the UK.

The research is produced with mid-life and older individuals, considering their financial resilience in the context of their social networks and living arrangements. To place individuals from minority ethnic groups in the UK at the heart of the research, we are using innovative methods such as photo images taken by participants to describe what late-life financial planning means to them. By listening to real life narratives, we can better understand the lived experiences of individuals from minority ethnic communities, add to the evidence on ethnic differentials in pensions, and promote greater inclusivity in pension protection.

The project also uses data from large-scale social surveys including Understanding Society and the Family Resources Survey. We also explore the usefulness of the Wealth and Assets Survey for the study of pension protection and saving among individuals from minority ethnic groups.

We are holding events about financial adequacy in later life with individuals from younger age groups (including school-age children) to older people, and we are liaising with a range of local and national stakeholders as part of the project; including the Department for Work and Pensions, AgeUK Southampton, Southampton City Council, The People's Pension, Citizens Advice Southampton, the Pensions Policy Institute, John Hansard Gallery, Runnymede Trust and the Institute for Fiscal Studies. We are also delighted to collaborate with Cantell School in Southampton. Our activities with a range of stakeholders will facilitate policy, practice and public learning on pensions and other forms of saving among minority ethnic communities.