Policies for Ageing Well at Home in Ireland: Improving Access to Support 2026

ALONE and Social Justice Ireland believe that all individuals should be supported to age well in the community, and that this should be government’s overarching policy goal for an ageing population. This requires accessible social and care support to allow people to remain in their own homes. It also requires a focus on wellbeing and maintenance of good health, prevention and management of chronic conditions, as well as suitable and accessible housing and transportation options. This involves a broad governmental and societal engagement across many areas of public policy and services that empowers older people.

In this paper, we focus on improving access to various supports needed to support us all to age at home. This paper should, therefore, be read alongside others in this series, particularly our 2024 and 2025 publications. When services are difficult to access, whether due to long waiting times, transportation barriers, insufficient communication options, information gaps, or financial constraints, it can prevent equitable outcomes being reached.

To complement the long-term vision set out in this policy paper, we have developed a dedicated Budget submission outlining the immediate steps needed to begin its implementation.