Shaping the Future of Good Company: A Reflection from Dr Delia Pop
- The Good Company People
- Dec 31, 2025
- 5 min read
Good Company has always been grounded in a very different understanding of ageing. It started from the belief that later life is not defined by loss or deficit, but by experience, perspective and contribution. When Lucy and I first began shaping what became Good Company, we were clear that dignity, agency, connection and joy were not optional extras. They were the foundation for everything that followed.
As we look ahead to the next chapter of Good Company, this vision feels more relevant than ever. Across the country, older adults and carers are navigating systems that are complex, fragmented and increasingly focused on managing problems rather than supporting lives. Too often, support is provided only when difficulties have already escalated. Yet ageing does not have to follow this trajectory. People want to remain active, connected and involved in their communities. They want support that strengthens, rather than replaces, their ability to live well. Good Company exists to make that possible.
Why Good Company matters right now
For more than two decades, my work has focused on system change and on creating the conditions that enable people to thrive within their families and communities. I spent over twenty years leading child protection reform across the world, working to replace orphanages with family led and community-based alternatives. As Director of Tanya’s Dream Fund, I continue to support long-term change in Bulgaria by investing in parent led solutions and collective approaches that ensure children thrive in families. Through A Little Light, I work with funders and practitioners to understand how to catalyse the system change needed to address some of the most pressing challenges facing children, families and communities, including poverty, violence, health challenges and climate change.
While these fields may seem distinct, the underlying logic is the same. Systems that focus on deficits intervene late and at great human and financial cost. Systems that invest early in connection, capability and belonging support people to thrive and remain independent for longer.
When it comes to ageing, the evidence is clear. Isolation accelerates decline, while meaningful social connection protects health, confidence and wellbeing. Good Company is built on this evidence, translating it into everyday, human-scale support.
Where we are going next
Good Company is now moving into a phase shaped by learning and evidence. With LEAP, and through our Clubs, Circles and Concierge, we have developed a deep understanding of what enables people to stay connected, confident and engaged. We have seen how trusted relationships reduce anxiety, sustain independence and create the conditions for people to adapt as their needs change. We have seen resilience being built, and connections and joy strengthening across our community.
Our focus now is on how to scale what we have proven works, while continuing to consolidate and document the model we have developed. Our ambitions for the coming years include:
Creating a welcoming Pop In space (HQ) in Crowborough
A place where people can drop in without referral or formality. A space that offers conversation, guidance and reassurance, and that makes visible a different model of ageing, one rooted in connection, normality and mutual support, embedded in the life of the High Street. We see this as a final key element in our model.
Strengthening our evidence base
Our ambition is to contribute to a wider shift towards prevention by making visible what the evidence already tells us, that sustained social connection, purpose and trusted relationships are protective factors for health, independence and wellbeing in later life.
Working with partners across academia, health and social care, we will continue to build a robust, practice-based evidence base that brings together quantitative outcomes, qualitative insight and lived experience. We are interested not only in whether the model works, but how, for whom and why, and how it can be sustained and adapted across different contexts.
Building long-term partnerships
The challenges associated with ageing cannot be addressed in isolation. We will continue to work alongside local authorities, NHS partners, funders, businesses and volunteers who share a commitment to community-led, prevention-focused approaches.
Our aim is for Good Company to contribute to wider change across the system, supporting practitioners, commissioners and policymakers to invest earlier and to recognise community-led connection and people-led solutions as a core part of healthy ageing, rather than an optional add on.
Developing our strategy for scale
As Good Company matures, we are turning our attention to how the model can be expanded without losing the qualities that make it effective. Scaling, for us, is not about rapid replication or growth for its own sake. It is about understanding which elements of Good Company are core, which can be adapted, and what conditions need to be in place for the model to work well in different communities.
We are beginning this work by developing a clear strategy for scale that brings together learning from our pilot, evidence from practice and insight from lived experience. This includes defining the principles, capabilities and partnerships required to support implementation elsewhere, alongside practical tools, training and support.
Our intention is to create a pathway that enables other places to adopt the Good Company approach in a way that is locally grounded, people-led and sustainable, ensuring that any future growth strengthens, rather than dilutes, our commitment to dignity, agency and connection.
Why I believe in this work
Good Company reflects the values that have shaped my work throughout my career. It is grounded in human rights and in the belief that people’s lives should not be reduced to diagnoses or needs. It recognises that prevention is not simply a cost-saving measure, but a way of supporting people to live the lives they choose for as long as possible. It places lived experience at the centre of design and decision-making, recognising it as expertise.
Our work also recognises the importance of timely support and access to specialist services. Good Company does not replace clinical, social care or specialist input. Instead, we work to ensure people are able to reach the right support early, without fear or unnecessary barriers, and are equipped with knowledge of what they can ask for and expect.
Most importantly, Good Company understands that ageing well is not about doing things to people, but about creating the conditions in which people can continue to contribute, connect and belong. Relationships, not programmes, are what make that possible.
A shared journey
The future of Good Company is not about growth for its own sake. It is about extending access to a model that values life experience, strengthens independence and keeps people connected to the places and communities that matter to them. It is about sustaining an approach that brings confidence, purpose and joy into later life.
I am proud to work alongside our members, volunteers, staff and partners as we take the next steps together. What we are building is grounded in evidence, shaped by lived experience and rooted in a belief that ageing can, and should, be a time of continued connection and contribution.
Dr Delia Pop
Co-Founder, The Good Company People
About Delia
Delia is an internationally recognised leader in system change and the development of people powered, community-based solutions addressing the challenges faced by children, families and communities experiencing poverty, violence, limited access to health and social care services, or the consequences of climate change. Over the last two decades, she has developed an approach to system change and reformed child protection systems in Eastern Europe, later scaling these solutions successfully in Africa, South America and East Asia through her work with Hope and Homes for Children.
She now directs Tanya’s Dream Fund, a ten-year grant-making initiative in Bulgaria supporting children to thrive in families. Delia is also the founder of A Little Light, which helps funders and practitioners understand and design effective system change solutions based on evidence and lived experience.
Across her work, Delia has consistently championed prevention, agency and the role of communities, principles that sit at the heart of Good Company.
