Table B1 shows how many seniors in each age band had difficulty with various tasks, and what proportion received some help with them. The first four columns are based on the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA) data for 2018– 19 (Banks et al, 2024), the others from the HSE (NatCen Social Research, 2023). ELSA asks if someone had a difficulty and then whether anyone helped with that task. But it does not indicate how serious the need for help was. So column E of Table B1 draws on the HSE, which does ask whether someone can do a task by themselves with difficulty, or only with help, or not at all, although its sample is much smaller. From the HSE, one can see what proportion of those with a difficulty couldn't manage without help and how many actually had help. The difference is the proportion with unmet need.

Column D shows that two of the biggest needs are help with bathing and with stairs. They are ones that might be addressed at least partly by home adaptations or housing design. The other major needs (help with going out, shopping and housework) are things that formal care services rarely provide. Extending also to gardening, these are the biggest unmet needs (column E) and are suitable for friends, neighbours and volunteers to take on.

ELSA data analysed by the author for Wave 9 (2018– 19; Banks et al, 2024) also offer a breakdown of the types of informal helper who support the different tasks. Results for the most common types of difficulty are shown in Table B2.