Older People and Migration

Susan Lawrence is President of the European Association of Schools of Social Work (EASSW), Regional Vice President of the International Association of Schools of Social Work (IASSW), and until 2013 was Head of Social Work at London Metropolitan University, UK. She qualified as a social worker in1976 and has been a social work academic since 1991. Sandra Torres is Professor of Sociology & Chair in Social Gerontology at Uppsala University, Sweden. Her research – which often lies at the intersection between the sociology of ageing and the sociology of migration and ethnic relations – problematizes old age-related constructs, sheds critical light on commonly used methods in health and social care, and deconstructs some of the assumptions that guide policy and practice for the older segments of our populations.

Introduction: An introduction to ‘the age of migration’ and its consequences for the field of gerontological social work 1. The impact of migrant work in the elder care sector: recent trends and empirical evidence in Italy 2. Migrant workers in eldercare in Israel: social andlegal aspects 3. Towards a model of externalisation and denationalisation of care? The role of female migrant care workers for dependent older people in Spain 4. Grandmothers as main caregivers in the context of parental migration 5. Families and caring amongst older people in South Asian communities in the UK: a pilot study 6. Democratization of ageing: also a reality for elderly immigrants? 7. Social work, older people and migration: an overview of the situation in Sweden 8. The experiences and expectations of care and support among older migrants in the UK