The importance of place for older people moving into care homes

In an increasingly mobile society, the importance of place can be forgotten in the process of making decisions about where older people should receive care. There is some evidence, however, that issues of location and place are important to older people, both in the way that their sense of self is developed and maintained through identification with places and through their ability to participate in activities. This paper describes a research study which followed a group of older people through the process of moving into care homes, and discusses some of the data produced, which indicated how a sense of place shaped the process of moving.