How we came into being; an overview

In the late 1990s the Government realised that with the lower birth rate and longer life span the older part of the population would become quite soon the largest sector of society and that a large amount of talent and energies was being wasted.

Therefore they set up an initiative called
Better Government for Older People (BGOP)

Its aims were to   promote partnerships between

Local, Regional and National Government
and
Older Peoples Voluntary and Private Sector Groups. Better Government for Older People was an independent partnership umbrella organization since come to an end.

At the same time, as one of the partnerships, the
Older People's Advisory Group (OPAG)
was set up.
In 1998 twenty eight pilot areas were rolled out of which Sheffield was one and from this, the people involved at the time got together with the City Council and Health partnerships to inaugurate what we now call Sheffield 50+, a local Older People's Advisory Group. At the time it was unique in being the first civic organization in the country with the influence to affect decisions made by the City Council. It still remains one of very few.