Getting old and being old is something that affects people in many different ways.

So what are the challenges and why are people getting excited about it?

Kent County Council now has its own “Older People’s Champion” - the Ashford county councillor Mike Angell, who gives his take on the age-old issue.

“Pop music stars have been divided on the subject of old age.

Pete Townshend of The Who can still be heard belting out 'Hope I Die Before I Get Old' from the band’s hit 'My Generation’. But more recently, Robbie Williams sang just the opposite: “I hope I’m old before I die.”

All over the world there are different views about getting old, but for most people there isn’t a choice about whether they get old or not – it just happens. So is it a good thing or not?

As a 74-year-old, active, cricket supporting, clarinet playing, government-lobbying politician, I would say it most certainly is. I have had to respond to getting older, but I certainly haven’t given up on living. The clarinet playing, for example, is a new interest and is one I intend to stick with. I can even muster one or two reasonable tunes.

And there are thousands of people in Kent who take the same approach as me, people who might be over 60 or 70 or 80, but still have every intention of making the most out of their own circumstances.

I recently spotted a news item about the West View Integrated Care Centre in Tenterden where a lady in her 90s is getting to grips with the Nintendo Wii. Clearly video games consoles are for absolutely anyone.

But if there are so many people out there living it up, as it were, why is getting old such a cause for concern?

Part of the reason is simply the number of people who are living longer.

Stand-up comic Eddie Izzard said in one of his routines that old people sometime marvel at how old they are. “When they were born, 1910 or whatever, 82 was an amazing age... when we’re old, we’re going to be going around saying: “I’m 120. Look, I’m 120.”

This raises an important issue. Medical science and more health awareness means people are living longer and this is making an enormous difference. It is good news and very welcome that people are living longer and I, for one, am very pleased to still be around. But there are challenges that come along with this.

One of these, of course, is that there are a lot of people who will need care as they get older. Another is something that I think is really important – to speak up for older people and for their interests. Older people will be a bigger part of everything that happens across society. In my role as Older People’s Champion, I want to speak up for this change and for the difference it makes.

I want Kent to be looking out for age discrimination, speaking out against it and doing away with it – and promoting a greater respect for diversity

I want older people to be considered when decisions are made about our environment, from the design of new homes to the way shopping centres are built.

I want older people more involved in decision making across the community – because forecasts say that by 2026 almost a quarter of the Kent population will be over 65.

And I want the issues that surround a bigger older population to get more attention nationally.

As someone who is committed to representing the interests of real people, I am really pleased to have this responsibility and I hope that by putting a focus on older people, we can give them the best possible experience in later life.”