This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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New Ageing Well Project
26/03/2003
North East Edinburgh's Link for Life Ageing Well Project has been launched in Leith.
Link for Life is a three year project which aims to promote healthy ageing and active living for those aged 50 and above.
Volunteers, known as Senior Health Mentors, will be recruited to help other older people become involved in health, leisure and social activities in the local area.
Health Minister Malcolm Chisholm said:
"The Executive is committed to a better life for older people in Scotland, now and in the future . We aim to support older people to live healthy independent lives and to promote positive attitudes towards ageing. This locally developed project is an excellent example of involving older people for the very start to make sure it addresses their needs and concerns.
"We want to emphasise the importance of improving health and well-being as people get older. We recently published 'Improving Health in Scotland- The Challenge' which calls for communities to be involved in improving the health of the nation. This is just the kind of project we want local communities to run.
"The Link for Life project is a very important initiative and I congratulate the North East Edinburgh Local Health Care Co-operative, Lothian NHS Board and the volunteers who are involved. There are huge gains if we encourage and support older people to be both physically and mentally active. I wish the project every success."