British Society of Gerontology (BSG) Scotland: How can we create housing that truly works for everyone as we age?

Description

Join the British Society of Gerontology (BSG) Scotland for a two-hour online event exploring barriers to inclusive housing and imagining solutions that support ageing well for all.

We are hosting an online event on Inclusive Housing from 10:00-12:00 on 4th November, bringing together researchers, practitioners, and people with lived experience to discuss barriers to inclusive housing for groups such as those ageing with a disability, older adults from ethnic minority and LGBTQ+ communities, and those experiencing housing insecurity and homelessness.
This event is an opportunity to learn from leading voices in housing, ageing, and inclusion and to connect with others who are passionate about creating age-friendly, equitable housing solutions.

Speakers:
Professor Vikki McCall, Professor of Social Policy, University of Stirling
Prof. Vikki McCall’s research focuses on how housing, ageing, stigma, and inclusion intersect. She leads work on co-production, participatory research with stakeholder groups and emphasises the role of policy processes in shaping lived experience. Vikki will share her insights from her project 'Intersectional Stigma of Place-based Ageing' (ISPA). ISPA explores how place, ageing, disability, and stigma interact; aiming to co-produce interventions and build peer-research networks.

Dr Sacha Hasan, Assistant Professor in Human Geography, Heriot Watt University
Dr. Sacha Hasan conducts research on inclusive and just urbanism, particularly how people from marginalised groups (age, ethnicity, disability, and socio-economic background) are impacted by institutional, planning, housing and service delivery structures. Sacha shares her project "Housing for Complex Needs", highlighting how people with learning disabilities and behaviour perceived as challenging face systemic barriers to suitable housing — including delayed hospital discharge, inappropriate placements, lack of coordination between health, social care and housing services.

Professor Judith Sixsmith, Professor of Health-Related Research, University of Dundee
Prof. Judith Sixsmith leads and collaborates on a number of research projects that directly address questions of inclusion, marginalisation, place, and ageing. She will share her insights from her project 'IncludeAge' which focuses on understanding the experiences of inclusion and exclusion for people with learning disabilities and identify as LGBTQ+. Judith is also involved in place-age projects which examine how environments and sense of place affect older people’s wellbeing, especially in disadvantaged or marginalised communities such as in Roma communities.

Panel discussion:
Following our speakers, we will hold a panel discussion with individuals from organisations outside of academia and individuals with lived experience. The panellists will reflect on their own experiences in relation to the speakers’ presentations and inclusive housing generally. There will also be opportunities for questions from the audience.

Panellists include:
Susie Fitton, Scottish Federation of Housing Associations
Emily Adams, Rapid Re-Accommodation Welcome Centre, Edinburgh
Pat Scrutton, IncludeAge Project
David Somervell, Cohousing Scotland
Plus representatives from Bield’s Older Person’s Rainbow Network in the audience.

Period	4 Nov 2025
Held at	British Society of Gerontology (BSG) Scotland, United Kingdom
Degree of Recognition	National