The Centre for Ageing Better has launched a free library of positive and realistic images of people aged over 50. 

The Centre for Ageing Better launched the first free library showing ‘positive and realistic’ images of older people in a bid to challenge negative and stereotypical views of later life. The images, which depict older people in non-stereotypical ways, are available for download and free to use. 

The images in the library illustrate a more realistic depiction of ageing and old age – to provide alternatives to the commonly used pictures of walking frames and ‘wrinkly hands’. 

The library, which contains over 400 images and will be regularly updated, offers organisations a wide selection of images that avoid stereotypes associated with older people.

The new resource follows their work on ageism and attitudes to ageing, including a recent report ‘An old age problem?’  which looked at depictions of later life across society. This report found that stock image libraries often use unrealistically positive or negative depictions of people in later life. 

It also recommended that in both words and pictures, the media should attempt to communicate a more diverse representation of what it means to be older without resorting to stereotypes. The image library coincides with their work on creating a suite of age-positive icons.

The images in the library are free for use and cover various themes related to ageing such as community, employment and health. 

You can access a preview of their image library hosted on ResourceSpace.

You can also download their guide to using the image library and guidance around commissioning age-positive photos.