The fate of older people in British society is rising up the political agenda. This week, Gordon Brown launched New Labour's call for a 'fairer care system'. The government predicts that a quarter of the UK will be over 65 in twenty years, and the number of people over 85 will double.

A recent opinion piece by Julia Neuberger in the Daily Mail laments the way our society treats its older people, and notes that cohousing is one possible answer to the question, 'what is all this extra life *for*?' Gordon Brown seems to have taken on board that people don't want to pour their equity into the pockets of a nursing home. Cohousing is clearly a way for older people to invest in their own continued independence. The mutual support inherent to cohousing could also save the state a huge amount of money. Has senior cohousing's time come?

From an Amazon reviewer: "Charles Durrett's Senior Cohousing book will help lead us into the next 17 years as an estimated 75 million Baby Boomers head into retirement. It only makes sense that the generation that brought social and environmental awareness to the fore would be searching for a sustainable, supportive, self-managed community housing solution for their later years, and Durrett has outlined in detail how - and why - to go about it.

"The stories and wisdom are from Denmark, where multigenerational cohousing began over 30 years ago. Since that time, cohousing has translated very successfully to over a dozen countries around the world, including over 90 completed neighborhoods in North America alone. With 20 out of the last 25 cohousing starts in Denmark being senior projects, we can only assume that Senior Cohousing on the rest of the planet will be as big - if not bigger - a hit.

"Durrett has given us clear and useful intruction in Senior Cohousing for how to go about creating a Senior Cohousing neighborhood, from gathering other interested parties to finding land, hiring the design and development professionals and building a cohesive community. The step-by-step chapters are interlaced with impotant and interesting sidebars, illustrations and photographs.

"The spirit of the book is both informative and fun. The candid photos, quotes and anecdotes drive home the glee with which these Elders are taking charge of their lives. Neighbors work and play together, share frequent meals, dance, bicycle, walk, and create poetry and art. After reading Senior Cohousing, for probably the first time in my life, I thought getting older might actually be a hoot."