Airdate: Old People’s Home for 4 Year Olds

Feelgood show Old People’s Home for 4 Year Olds begins on ABC in late August.

Based on a UK format, and narrated by Annabel Crabb, this brings together two generations to inspire change and positivity.

When parts of this trailer screened at ABC Upfronts last year it brought a smile to seasoned media faces, and I’ll tip this as a big hit for ABC.

Professor in Geriatric Medicine, Sue Kurrle says: “In order to make positive change for people in aged care here, we need evidence that intergenerational care can work in this country. We hope that our experiment will give that evidence and allow it to be adopted much more widely. Older people were young once and hopefully seeing these four-year-olds will really draw them out of themselves. Get them singing and laughing and dancing again as they would’ve when they were younger, bringing them back into life again.”

As Australia’s older population increases, so too will the issues that affect their health and happiness. Could the solution to a better life for older Australians be as simple as spending time with four-year-olds?

In an extraordinary social experiment, screening over five weeks from Tuesday, 27 August at 8.30pm on ABC + ABC iview, children are sharing a pre-school with the residents of a nearby retirement home. Aiming to improve the health and wellbeing of the older people, by helping them to lead happier, and healthier lives, Old People’s Home for 4 Year Olds is a ground breaking and heart-warming new documentary series. 

Across the seven week experiment, participants test a model of care that could transform the way we support our most vulnerable Australians. Our two groups of eleven older Australians, and ten pre-schoolers, are brought together for planned, mixed activities each day in a specially designed pre-school built within a retirement home. Here they will share a structured timetable that encourages physical activity, social interaction, learning and happiness.

At the helm are a team of experts in geriatric health and wellbeing and an early childhood expert who, over the course of the series, will scientifically analyse and monitor the progress of both groups. They will track the quantifiable and measurable physical and mental changes of the older group, and the developmental growth of the children.

Production Credits: Old People’s Home for 4 Year Olds is an Endemol Shine Australia production in association with the ABC. Old People’s Home for 4 Year Olds is a format created by CPL Productions for Channel 4 (UK), and distributed worldwide by Red Arrow Studios International.

Narrator: Annabel Crabb, Executive Producer: Debbie Cuell, Series Producer: Brooke Hulsman, ABC Commissioning Editor: Julie Hanna and ABC Head of Entertainment and Factual: Josie Mason-Campbell.

Tuesday, 27 August at 8.30pm on ABC.