Growing older

![CDATA[Over recent years many reports have been published that highlight the health disparities experienced by people with intellectual disabilities (for example Rickard and Donkin, 2018) and the fact that they often suffer premature and avoidable deaths (for example Glover et al, 2017). However, it is also the case that, overall, the life expectancy of people with intellectual disabilities is increasing (Coppus, 2013). This means that many more people with intellectual disabilities are living into older age and facing the challenges that often accompany advanced years. This is a relatively new phenomenon and, as Bigby and Haveman (2010) observed, it was only in the 1980s that issues relating to ageing amongst people with intellectual disabilities started to appear in the academic literature, at conferences and to inform service planning at a national level. In turn, this situation is presenting new challenges to families, carers and services that seek to provide support for this ageing population and, in particular, giving rise to a need to develop new knowledge and skills (Bigby and Haveman, 2010).]]