Polari (1993-2009) is closing
Polari (1993-2009) is closing
Polari, the organisation that has campaigned since 1993 for greater awareness of, and more inclusive services for, older lesbians and gay men (and latterly also for bisexual and transgender older people) will be closing at the end of March 2009.
A new user-led older LGBT organisation, Age of Diversity, is setting up
Our important work of the past sixteen years will be carried on by other organisations, and Polari is delighted to announce that its Director, Lindsay River, is working with other older LGBT people to launch a new, user-led organisation: Age of Diversity, the Older Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans Alliance – ageofdiversity@googlemail.com
Polari’s work
Polari has always been a very small organisation but has had considerable influence nonetheless, bringing the voices of the older LGBT people we have consulted to government departments such as the Department of Health and agencies such as the Commission for Social Care Inspection and the Social Care Institute for Excellence.
Our policy and strategy work, and user involvement and consultation has been Polari’s core task: something that has been well recognised by our funders, Comic Relief, the Big Lottery, City Parochial Foundation, City Bridge Trust and Lloyds TSB.
Polari’s work as a catalyst and instigator, as an advisor and sometimes as a challenging voice has been widely effective. While we are disappointed that there is still not the range of services, funded social networks, housing choices and options that we know that older LGBT people want as ageing tax payers and citizens, we do see that more service providers and local commissioners are beginning to think about how inclusive and appropriate their older services are. The answer to ‘where’s the nearest gay care home?’ is still ‘Berlin’, but we are delighted that the Commission for Social Care Inspection has produced material to stimulate better services for older LGBT people who use care. (More about Polari’s achievements on page 3).
What about the future?
There is still, without doubt, an urgent need for an older LGBT led organisation working in the field. Older LGBT needs are not always well represented or understood by younger LGBT people, and we need to speak for ourselves about them. This new organisation, Age of Diversity, needs in time to become bigger and better known than Polari and to involve large numbers of our older communities.
Our past work to stimulate support and social networks for older LGBT people has been ably taken on by Age Concern in many local areas. Similarly Age Concern England brings its national name and expertise to promote new thinking in policy and strategy about sexual orientation, gender identity and age.
The Consortium of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Voluntary and Community Organisations will provide support and desk space to the new user led alliance, and is seeking to incorporate work on older LGBT people’s needs into its own programme. The new organisation, Age of Diversity, will be unfunded at first but plans to focus the enthusiasm, expertise and voluntary effort of the older LGBT communities to make a better future for older LGBT people. Lindsay and other older LGBT people will continue Polari’s work on user local and national reference groups and advisory groups to influence future older people’s service provision. Age of Diversity will also be working with Stonewall Housing looking at housing needs that older LGBT people express, and talking with Stonewall about initiatives to support care providers in gay-friendly service provision.
Polari’s web presence will continue as an archive at http://www.polari.org and access will remain for all our publications on which many researchers, policymakers and older LGBT people rely.
Older lesbians, gay men, bisexual and trans people have been the strength and heart of Polari: more will be heard from them and their new campaigns in the years to come in the new Age of Diversity we foresee.
Join with us in celebrating the achievements of Polari, as we hand on the baton to Age of Diversity.
Contact details for Age of Diversity – and do join their mailing list
Age of Diversity will eventually have a website. In the meantime please do contact the new organisation at ageofdiversity@googlemail.com and by writing to:
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Age of Diversity
c/o Consortium of LGBT Voluntary and Community Organisations
J111 Tower Bridge Business Complex
100 Clements Road, Southwark
London, SE16 4DG
Polari’s achievements
Polari’s achievements include ground-breaking research (‘As We Grow Older’, 1995), years of consultation with older lesbians and gay men, a project that involved them together with local policy makers and service providers in three London Boroughs (Polari in Partnership 2002-2005, reported in ‘Being Taken Seriously, 2006) a major Conference for service providers (‘In the Life’) in 2005. Since this time Polari has undertaken research on the experience of older lesbian gay and bisexual users of mental health services, and users of general practice, consultation work locally and strategic work on many advisory groups and user reference groups.
Forthcoming
* Not Safe For Us Yet: The experiences and views of older lesbian, gay men and bisexuals using mental health services in London (A scoping study), Sam Wintrip, Polari 2009
* The experiences of older lesbians, gay men and bisexuals using general practice, Lindsay River, Polari 2009
Polari’s work and references can be found on our website at http://www.polari.org
