Mobilising Cross-Sectoral Collaboration in Creating Age-Friendly Cities: Case Studies from Akita and Manchester

Doran, Patty; Yarker, Sophie; Buffel, Tine; Satake, Hisami; Watanabe, Fumito; Kimoto, Minoru; Kodama, Ayuto; Kume, Yu; Suzuki, Keiko; Makabe, Sachiko; Ota, Hidetaka

Abstract

Developing Age-Friendly Cities and Communities (AFCCs) is an increasingly popular policy response to supporting ageing populations. AFCC programmes rely on cross-sectoral collaboration, involving partnerships among diverse stakeholders working across sectors to address shared goals. However, there remains a limited understanding of what mechanisms and strategies drive collaboration among diverse actors within age-friendly cities. To address this gap, this empirical paper draws on examples from a comparative case study across Akita (Japan) and Manchester (UK), two cities with distinct demographic profiles but both with a longstanding commitment to the age-friendly approach. Case studies were created through a range of data collection methods, namely, a review of secondary data sources, semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders, and fieldwork in each city. Key insights from the case studies relating to the mobilisation of cross-sectoral collaboration were categorised into three themes: leadership and influencing, co-production, and place-based working. These mechanisms are not mutually exclusive; collaboration building through co-production and place-based working is essential to deliver age-friendly programmes, but these mechanisms rely on leadership and influence. Therefore, it is recommended that all three mechanisms be used to effectively mobilise cross-sectoral collaborations to collectively create AFCC and support healthy ageing.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Dec 24, 2024
• Online Publication Date: Jan 8, 2025
• Publication Date: Jan 8, 2025
• Deposit Date: Jan 28, 2025
• Publicly Available Date: Jan 28, 2025
• Journal: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
• Electronic ISSN: 1660-4601
• Publisher: MDPI
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 22
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 73
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph22010073