IN last week’s Gazette & Herald under the heading, ‘Sentence needs to fit the crime’ regarding crimes against the elderly in their own homes, theft from our pensioners by heartless criminals who pray on them in their homes by straightforward theft or by traders tricking them to part with money, maybe charging them for a service which is way overpriced, are all crimes that leave an elderly person very upset and unsure of themselves, and feeling, as stated, violated.
It’s not just the sentence to fit the crime, it’s our society in general, the lack of respect for the elderly, the lack of community spirit, the lack of time we have due to our busy lives to check if everything is alright with our neighbours. We all take for granted that our elderly neighbours are managing on their own. Let us all take some responsibility for the older people in the community.
We also see the lack of social care for the elderly living on their own, the lack of funding to provide help for them in their homes, the lack of quality care packages by our local authority is a serious problem. Older people can’t leave hospital because there isn’t sufficient care provided at home. This all ads up to a poor reflection on our society.
It’s time we looked at these issues with serious concern, the over 70 and 80-year-olds in our community are growing, therefore it’s time to treat the elderly with the consideration that they really deserve.
DAVID POOLE
Rowden Hill
Chippenham