What does life look like as we head towards retirement age and beyond? And what’s a millennial doing thinking about retirement?

I used a state pension calculator to find out when I can retire. 2054, I’ll be 68 years old. But life expectancy rates in the UK are on the rise. Even if the retirement age keeps creeping up, there’s potential that some of us could have decades to fill following on from our working lives. 

I’ve been meeting people from across the UK to find out how volunteering has positively impacted their lives as they transition away from employment. Whether it’s a sense of purpose, increased self-confidence, a feeling of connection with others or a way to explore new skills; each person talks of the transformative effect volunteering has had on their lives. 

Christina Ashby

Christina (63) dedicated her working life to nannying, but after a serious knee injury, she found herself suddenly out of work at age 60. Unable to claim a state pension for another six years, Christina began looking for alternative jobs that weren’t as physically demanding. However, weeks of rejections turned into months and the panic grew into depression. 

To strengthen her knee, Christina took regular walks through Morden Hall Park in South London, a place not unfamiliar to her. Prior to the injury she would visit with the children she cared for and had even visited the park during her own childhood. Christina decided to look for paid roles at Morden Hall. 

Although Christina didn’t land a paid job at the park, she did sign up to the Nature Group as a volunteer. Almost immediately after starting her volunteer position, she felt a change. “People stopped me and asked me questions about the park and I felt important again and that I could play a role in life. I wasn’t just sitting in my flat feeling miserable, it really boosted my confidence.”

Shortly after joining the group, where she takes part in butterfly and bird surveys to assess the health of the park, Christina was offered a job. “If this place hadn’t cheered me up and given me confidence, I might not have gotten that job.”

Bipin Patel

After a career working in IT for the police, Bipin (60) now volunteers at Back to Backs in Birmingham. Back to Backs is a carefully restored 19th century courtyard of working people’s houses in the city. 

Bipin took voluntary redundancy with open arms he says, at a time when technology was moving so fast that he began to feel left behind and de-skilled. Bipin always knew that he wanted to volunteer, saying “There was no way I was going to sit at home”. He tried a couple of different roles such as teaching maths and volunteering at a garden centre before he settled on his role as Visitor Welcome Volunteer at Back to Backs. Bipin works front of house greeting visitors and selling tickets.

After 38 years of working with computers, Bipin said that he “wanted to come out from behind the screen”. Alongside his role at Back to Backs, he also volunteers at Walsall Magistrates Court looking after witnesses. Bipin explains what a transformative effect volunteering has had on his confidence. “I engage a lot better with people. I’ve grown in confidence. I wish this had come 20 odd years ago!” 

Bipin considers himself very lucky to have been able to retire early and is taking the opportunity to learn some new skills. He attends weekly cooking classes, he goes to yoga and he is continuing to learn Spanish which is something he started 10 years ago. Bipin has also added woodworking to the list and now visits The Aldridge Shed where he is learning to make a wine rack.

Hugh Tooby

Hugh (58) is a retired GP. I met him in glorious sunshine in the Ochil Hills in Scotland near where he lives. After a career helping people with their problems, Hugh is choosing to spend his retirement years alone in the outdoors. He says, “This is just me, outside with the hills and the birds”. Hugh conducts citizen science wildlife surveys for the British Trust for Ornithology. Hugh walks, canoes and hikes across different areas tracking the number and species of birds that he spots. He then uploads that data online which experts use to report on the health of the local ecosystem. 

Hugh’s volunteering is also impacting his own health, in a very positive way. Being outdoors, surrounded by nature, and having a sense of purpose really helps alleviate his symptoms of anxiety and OCD. He emphasises the importance of having an external focus and says, “I observed that after a period of time out on my own, doing this sort of thing, that I feel better. It’s similar to the buzz you get if you go out cycling or rock climbing because you’re focused on something external.”

We talk about this idea of focus and how it can lead to a meditative state, something which he experiences almost as soon as he starts looking for birds. Hugh is passionate about the mental health benefits of citizen science activities and says that all you need to get involved is a pair of trainers, a cheap pair of binoculars and a phone. 

A couple of swallows flit past above our heads and I ask Hugh if he’s always been a bird expert. He tells me no and that this is the beauty of it. “What is most useful is identifying the trends in common birds. If a really common bird like the swallows we’re enjoying here were suddenly to plummet in numbers, that’s telling you something very important”. 

Harjinder Grewal

Despite visiting hospital three times a week to undergo dialysis treatment, and working a part-time job, Harjinder (65) also volunteers one day a week in the flower shop at Hammersmith Hospital.

In 2009, Harjinder underwent a kidney transplant. She explains, “Hammersmith has done a lot for me, they really looked after me after my transplant and I thought I should put something back into society.”

Harjinder’s transplant ultimately didn’t work out and she is currently on the waiting list for another kidney. When that happens, she says she might finally retire and if she does, she hopes to spend more time volunteering in the flower shop. “I find myself so fulfilled seeing the machinery we’ve donated is helping other people”. The money the flower shop raises goes directly into buying equipment for the hospital, such as reclining chairs for the neonatal unit which allows parents to enjoy skin to skin contact with their baby.

As a Sikh, Harjinder says charity work is very important to her faith and that she hopes to set a good example to her children and grandchildren, who already donate some of their birthday money to Friends of Hammersmith who run the flower shop.

Harjinder goes on to tell me how helping others has also provided her with greater perspective on her own health problems. She says, “I love being close to people, listening to them. It also makes me feel that I’m not the only one. You see people suffering much more than you do.” 

Brian Longley

According to research, older people who volunteer are more likely to live longer and healthier lives and Brian might just be a perfect example of this. 

I met Brian on his 96th birthday as he was sawing up a 10-foot long branch ready to go on the bonfire. Brian has been volunteering for 25 years with the National Trust Limpsfield Task Force. The team manages the upkeep of the local woodland, clearing undergrowth and maintaining paths and even restoring a number of air-raid shelters for school visits. Brian’s long-standing nickname is, “Brian the fire-starter”. As a younger volunteer, Brian would oversee the bonfire, returning long after the volunteers had gone home to ensure the fire had died out completely.

Once a week, Brian takes the short walk from his home to meet the task force on the common. Brian says he enjoys the physical exercise, that it “keeps him going”. He also enjoys the friendships he’s built over the years and believes that it’s important to do something in your local area.

Timi Veerasamy

At age 59, Timi (now 68) took up running. She went to Parkrun, the free 5k timed run which takes place in parks all around the world every Saturday morning. Nine years later, Timi is still running and Parkrun has opened up a whole new world to her.

Although she had originally planned to open her own private CBT practice when she retired, Timi began volunteering for Parkrun, helping to set up and marshall the weekly runs. She started getting more and more involved, even recruiting her husband, son and daughter as volunteers. Five years ago, Timi helped launch Barking and Dagenham Junior Parkrun. This 2k run for children aged 4-14 takes place every Sunday morning in Parsloes Park. When asked what makes her get up early every Sunday and put on her Run Director tabard, she says “It’s seeing the smiles on their beautiful faces, the fact that they want to do this activity”. Timi has noticed that the children have a very positive attitude towards life. She loves to see how friendly they are, and willing to help each other even if it means they get a slower time.

After experiencing how Parkrun has transformed her own family, Timi loves seeing the difference Junior Parkrun makes to the lives of the children who come along, but also their parents. “It makes me so happy. You can’t buy that emotion”. During the week, Timi also visits schools in the local area to invite the children to Junior Parkrun.

Timi also continues to recruit new volunteers. Her friends half-jokingly say ”Don’t look Timi in the eye!” referring to her infectious way of getting others involved. She’s almost persuaded my to sign up to volunteer by the end of the interview. 

One final question, “Will you still set up your CBT practice?” I ask as we head out to meet the kids. “No, I haven’t got time!”