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About

United for All Ages is a 'think-do' tank founded in 2010 to create a 'Britain for all ages', tackling big social and economic issues such as loneliness, ageism, care, health, housing and learning.  

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Its co-founders and directors are Denise Burke and Stephen Burke.

In their work and their lives, they promote interaction between all ages - from intergenerational care and living to grandparenting.

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Covid-19 has shown how much we miss mixing and intergenerational interaction. The 2020s will be a decade of reconnection as we recover.

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Denise Burke has more than thirty five years’ experience as a leader in the public sector, and is adept at working across voluntary and private sectors. Her experience includes:

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  • supporting local authorities with Childcare Works in the delivery of the Holiday Activities and Food programme with the Department for Education and increasing take-up of tax-free childcare with HMRC

  • director of pioneering social enterprise for all ages

  • chair, private nursery group

  • CEO of smallsteps, the largest childcare company in the Netherlands

  • adviser to private equity investors in childcare

  • consultant in integrated and extended services

  • senior management in early years, youth services and childcare, including for the Mayor of London

  • strategic change management, reorganisation, restructuring and policy development

  • commissioner and manager of services

  • operational management experience of complex programmes from development through to implementation and evaluation

  • tax inspector

  • chair of school governors

  • pioneer in reforming local services

  • Parliamentary candidate

Stephen Burke has over thirty years’ experience in leadership in the third and public sectors. This includes:

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  • CEO of two charitable foundations promoting ageing well and improving care and tackling disadvantage in the UK and India

  • director of pioneering social enterprises for all ages

  • CEO of national charities focused on childcare and eldercare

  • senior management experience and PR, fundraising and editing in a range of national organisations

  • leader of and cabinet member at Hammersmith & Fulham council with twelve years as a councillor

  • non-executive director and vice-chair of Hammersmith & Fulham primary care trust

  • vice-chair of the governing body of North Norfolk Clinical Commissioning Group and chair of finance and performance

  • board of Victory Housing Trust (part of Flagship Group)

  • board member of ACEVO (Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations), co-chair of Grandparents Plus and trustee/chair of a host of other national and local charities

  • chair of The Together Project, trustee of Care Rights UK and Tendring Families First

  • Chair of the Family Mediation Council

  • Parliamentary candidate

  • Fellow of Royal Society of Arts, Chartered Institute of Public Relations

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Her achievements include:

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  • influencing childcare business growth

  • initiating the first intergenerational centre for all ages in London

  • leading the development of national child poverty programmes including the Childcare Affordability Programme

  • acting as spokesperson and ambassador in London and nationally to ensure the high profile of early years and childcare services

  • winning prestigious early education and childcare sector recognition awards

  • commenting regularly in the media on childcare and speaking at national conferences

  • chairing BBC Children in Need, London and SE Region

  • chair of governors for two primary schools and a children’s centre

  • currently Mayor of Wivenhoe as a town councillor in north Essex

His achievements include:

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  • putting action for all ages and co-location of care, housing and learning on the policy and media agenda

  • getting eldercare high up the public and policy agenda

  • raising the profile of information and advice on care

  • leading the campaign for universal children’s centres and securing substantial public investment in childcare

  • leading major change in local services

  • influencing public policy from crime prevention and volunteering to care and our ageing society

  • chairing and leading a range of voluntary sector organisations

  • regularly contributing to national and social media and speaking at and chairing conferences

  • contributing to various national commissions, select committees and all party parliamentary groups

  • being recognised in national awards

  • co-founding initiatives ranging from the Campaign to End Loneliness, www.downsizingdirect.com and FirstStop Advice to www.goodcareguide.co.uk; Older People in the Media awards and the annual childcare costs survey, and creating the merged Grandparents Plus charity and the Family Mediation Trust

Together Denise and Stephen are United for All Ages

Awards

  • Social Care Personality of the Year

  • CIPR Sword of Excellence

  • PR Week charity award

  • NMT Childcare Business Regional Development award

  • Caring Times award

Other current activities include:

“Spending cuts threaten to create conflict between generations as the middle-aged are forced to bear the cost of caring for children and the elderly, according to social policy experts. A report from United for All Ages, a new social enterprise, expressed concern that children’s centres could be closed and care services for the elderly cut, leaving families facing a “care crunch”. It said “generational tensions” were a significant risk as a result of the spending cuts and urged councils to create facilities where all generations could mix.”

Daily Telegraph

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