The dance steps to healthier lifestyle for Leeds disco queen grandma

Hers is one of the many voices of older people to have been captured in communities across Leeds as part of a major in-depth council report into how people are ageing in the city.

Over 900 people aged over 50 were surveyed for this year’s Director of Public Health annual report, ‘Ageing Well: Our Lives in Leeds’, which was presented to city health leaders at the Health and Wellbeing Board this month.

The report combines the survey responses with the latest data and trends on factors which impact ageing to make a series of recommendations for increasing the numbers of years people spend in good health.

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The need to keep active was one of the key findings, along with the importance of social connections and staying healthy – which Margaret says are all major benefits of her dance classes.

The great-grandmother-of-three said: “Dancing has been big part of my life and it’s what’s kept me going. I really enjoy it. For me, the adrenalin starts and I just love it. It keeps me mobile because if you don’t you just stiffen up and you can’t do anything.”

Margaret was first introduced to dancing as a teenager by a friend who took her to the Astoria Ballroom in Roundhay – a former hotspot in the city’s dancing scene.

The venue, which initially opened on Roundhay Road as the Harehills Palais-de-Danse in 1929, became popular for ballroom dancing in the 1940s before later becoming a live music venue and eventually closing in 1992.

Nowadays, Margaret moves to modern music and disco tunes at Yorkshire Dance’s Dance On classes and said: “You’ve got to go with the times. Ballroom went out, then sequence and then line dancing but you’ve just got to carry on.

“I like really jolly music which gets you going. The classes are good for mixing with people too – we have a laugh, we’re like one big family.

“Dancing might not be everyone’s cup of tea but I think it could be most people’s. People can’t believe it when I say how old I am.”

With one in three people living in Leeds aged over 50 and the size of the 70-80+ population expected to grow significantly over the coming years, the Ageing Well report highlights the city’s currents strengths and challenges and lists priorities for the future.

It builds on the council’s aim of being the best place to grow old and its long-standing commitment to being an Age Friendly City, examining factors including diet, smoking, alcohol intake, mental health, travel, housing, employment and financial wellbeing and emphasising the need to address poorer health outcomes in the city’s most deprived areas.

Victoria Eaton, Leeds City Council’s director of public health, said: “We really wanted to shine a light on the experiences of ageing well in Leeds and what we can do to improve this further.

“Poor health in older age is not inevitable. Leeds is clearly a wonderful place to age well and we’re incredibly proud to be an Age Friendly city. But some people are experiencing ill-health from their early 50s and we know there is much more we can do to support people from all parts of the city stay healthier for longer.

“I hope this report is helpful in setting out how we can work together to support people to have a healthier life in Leeds.”

The report explains how Leeds’s ageing population is changing and becoming more diverse, with growing numbers of over 50s living in areas of deprivation.

Stark differences remain between the most deprived areas of Leeds and least deprived areas, where residents tend to die earlier on average and spend a greater number of years living in poor health.

Addressing health inequalities remains a top priority of the council and its partners and the report emphasises the importance of recognising the needs of different communities in supporting people to age well, as well as identifying health problems and risk factors earlier and increasing preventative support.

On the topic of social connections, over half (55%) of older people surveyed said they thought activities, groups and the local community were a strong factor in ageing well.

More people aged 55+ reported having ‘never felt lonely’ (34 per cent), than reported having been lonely ‘often/always’ (four per cent) or for ‘some of the time’ (12 per cent).

The survey also asked older people to rate how happy they felt – with most giving a score of eight out of 10 on a ‘happiness scale’ of 0 (not at all happy) to 10 (completely happy).

Creating more opportunities for people to keep active and social connected was a key recommendation in the report, alongside priorities including increasing accessible and safe travel around the city, supporting people to age well in employment and tackling negative stereotypes and ageism.

Cllr Fiona Venner, executive member for equality, health and wellbeing, said: “We need to challenge the perception that ageing means poor health. Everyone can experience ageing well and this report provides tangible recommendations to enable people across the city to stay healthier for longer in later life.”

For more information on Dance On, which runs 12 classes across Leeds, visit yorkshiredance.com/project/dance-on