As our Executive Chair Ruth Lowbridge MBE joins the board of PRIME Cymru, we talk to her about the role and how the charity’s work corresponds to the IOEE’s new Age Diversity Programme.

Today’s over 50s are pioneers, a generation that’s redefining the way mature people operate and are perceived both in the workplace and the world of enterprise. As earners and as entrepreneurs, they face an entirely different set of challenges and opportunities from those of their parents and grandparents. This is part of the reason Ruth Lowbridge, Executive Chair of both SFEDI and the IOEE, is so pleased to have been invited to become a trustee of PRIME Cymru:

“In 2015, for over 50s, the landscape of work and enterprise is like nothing that’s ever gone before. The difficulties are new but so are the possibilities for great positive change and a complete rethink about how older people live, thrive and stay economically engaged. Who wouldn’t want to be part of that?”

PRIME Cymru, a unique organisation, is one of the Prince of Wales’ charities. Its remit is simple: to support those aged 50 and over living in Wales, to become and to remain economically active through self-employment, employment, education, training or volunteering. As the population ages, helping older people retain an active role in the economy is increasingly important both in terms of individual quality of life and in order to fully tap into a wealth of insight and experience. This is something the IOEE is attuned to and, working alongside the British Government’s Growth Hubs and Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs), the organisation has recently introduced a range of training and qualifications for employers under the banner of Age Diversity. Ruth says:

“Our Age Diversity offer is about an ageing workforce and helping employers to identify the brilliant opportunities and also the threats attached to that. It will give employers techniques for ensuring their mature employees feel valued and energised in the workplace, as well as the tools they need to avoid the detrimental impact of losing valuable team members as they reach retirement age.”

For Ruth, as a PRIME Cymru trustee it’s important to recognise the very diverse motivating forces that prompt those over 50 to become more economically active. While many young people may share simple ambitions for career success, for older people objectives are often more nuanced:

“I don’t think older people need to think of themselves as entrepreneurs; they go into business for many different reasons. Everyone has their own driver. It could be a personal driver or a financial driver. It might be wanting to give back or do something good for the community. For an older person going into business, it might be something they’ve never done before. Often, there’s a lightbulb moment where they think ‘Well actually, I may have worked for a corporate or a large organisation for some time, but some of the skills I’ve used to operate within my role are the skills I’d need to run my own business.’ It’s about helping people to understand the transferability of their skills, knowledge and experience.”

In fact, the question of what motivates people to seek economic engagement later in life is central to a report released by the National Assembly for Wales in July this year. Entitled Employment Opportunities for People Over 50, the report provides a snapshot of today’s employment landscape for those over 50 in Wales, as well as looking at the factors that impact this particular age group’s attempts to be economically active. For example, age discrimination, caring responsibilities, health issues or a lack of opportunities. The report calls for the Welsh Government to increase the number of work placements and training opportunities available to over-50s, something PRIME Cymru is instrumental in facilitating. The charity has advisors in North, South and Mid-Wales meeting face-to-face with people to provide signposting and support, to initiate mentoring relationships and deliver training. PRIME Cymru functions as a SFEDI Award Centre to offer qualifications, both in business mentoring and start-ups.

As well as bringing an impressive body of professional enterprise expertise to the role of trustee, at 62, Ruth herself is a mature entrepreneur, giving her a valuable level of empathy and insight:

“I didn’t start my own business until I was 40 so I came to self-employment late and I was 50 when I really got involved at SFEDI and took a leading, practical role in taking the organisation forward. So I’ve been there myself, and that makes it relatively easy for me to think about some of the challenges faced by older people.”

With characteristic commitment, Ruth is working hard to know and understand the charity in order that she might offer its users her best possible service as a trustee:

“I’m really embedding myself in order to find out exactly how PRIME Cymru does what it does. To understand fully how the charity works, it’s important that I meet face-to-face with the people who are benefiting from its services. A large part of the reason I’m so excited about the role is that it directly calls on the personal experience I’ve gained through developing the SFEDI Group, yet it gives me a completely different perspective to work from. Fulfilling my role at PRIME Cymru will add tremendous value to my work here, and vice versa.”