Carnegie UK 

Older people in the UK report a higher quality of life than their younger counterparts, according to landmark Carnegie UK and Ipsos research based on a survey of more than 6900 people.  

The new Life in the UK Index measures the wellbeing of the people of the UK by examining answers to questions across social, environmental, economic, and democratic themes. The study found older people (55+ years) scoring more positively across each theme than younger age groups (16 to 54 years).  

Carnegie UK argues that government should work to close the gap between these age groups by delivering policies designed to boost the wellbeing of younger people. The organisation believes that the new index is the largest independent study of the collective wellbeing of the people of the UK. 

The research also found a widespread lack of trust across all age groups in the UK’s political systems and institutions, with only a minority of people feeling that they had influence over local or national decision-making. 

The survey work found that almost three quarters (73%) of people in the UK feel that they cannot influence decisions that affect the UK as a whole. Further, more than half (56%) of people disagree they can influence local decision-making and a similar proportion (52%) have a low level of trust in the UK Government.