RETIRED people moving to Dorset have been defended by a senior councillor.

Cllr Sherry Jespersen says that overall incoming retired people make a positive contribution to the county.

She told a Friday meeting that most tended to be fit and financially secure and were unlikely, because of their position, to make much call on Dorset Council services.

“Almost because of our house prices by definition the people who tend to move here to retire are financially self-sufficient and healthy and make an enormous contribution  to community life…they are largely the people who keep our communities functioning and we’re very pleased to have them here with their spending,” she said.

Cllr Jespersen, , who chairs one of the Dorset Council planning committees, said there was no evidence that people who retired to the county became a burden to Dorset Council services as most, because of their relative wealth, had to self-fund their own care if and when that was needed.

Her comments came after remarks about retired people putting a demand on services were made during a discussion about revising the Dorset Council Plan.

During the meeting Cllr Beryl Ezzard told the place and resources overview committee that one parish in her area now had over ten per cent of its population over 85.

“It’s so expensive now that only retired people can afford to live here,” she said…“support is going to have to be available in the future for their care.”

Dorchester councillor Les Fry had also warned about a decline in Dorset among people of working age.

The revised Dorset Council Plan document says that of the 388,500 residents, 29 per cent are now aged 65 or older, compared to an 18 per cent average across England and Wales. Around 7,000 county residents of the rural county are living with dementia with the numbers increasing year by year.

The report says that the greatest part of population growth is among over 65s with the working age population expected to see a marginal decline over the next 25 years, also noting that younger people often move away from the area.

A document prepared for Dorset Council in 2019 predicted that the rural county’s 65+ population would grow by 47% over the next 25 years.

It also said that within the next ten years 116,200 of over 65s would have a long-term health problems or disability, up by 20 per cent on current figure, while the number of over 85s will grow by 25 per cent in a decade while 12 per cent of the population will be looking after someone else as an unpaid carer, compared to 10 per cent nationally.

Other findings of that report said that Dorset Council would need to switch focus to integrated ways of working, involving partners such as the NHS, with a greater emphasis on prevention – but also on rehabilitation and reablement after illness.  More work was also needed to find suitable housing with increased demand expected for one-bedroom homes.

Cabinet adult social care brief holder Cllr Laura Miller said at the time that the council would also need to consider what could be done to house workers needed for the adult social care sector in a county where average homes are beyond the reach of workers on lower wages and affordable rented homes are in short supply, especially in rural areas.