Ageing urban societies face the challenge of enabling a "good" life for older people in their neighbourhood areas. This article focuses on potential obstacles and required preconditions for processes of neighbourhood development, based on results from the research and development project "Quality of life of older people in their neighbourhood" (LiW). Preconditions and obstacles include political and organizational requirements, differing understandings of participation of local experts, as well as the organization of the process and the access to the process. Furthermore, problems and social conflicts, which have to be dealt with on the local level, are examined. An example for such conflicts are statements of group-focused enmity. The paper aims to point out the significials of such processes as well as potential barriers and limits in order to inform academics as well as practitioners and to contribute to the sustainable integration of participative neighbourhood development.

The social and political participation of elderly people is characterized by social inequality. Participation processes normally consolidate and intensify the exclusion of senior citizens having low incomes and low educational qualifications. In the research and development project "Quality of Life of Elderly People in Living Quarters" being conducted by Dortmund University of Applied Sciences and Arts, one of the questions being examined is whether and to what extent socially disadvantaged elderly people in a social space typical of the Ruhr region (reference area Gelsenkirchen-Schalke) can be included in the shaping of their quarter. This paper is based on the results of a quantitative, written survey (cross-section) on the subjects of quality of life and participation, and on a trend analysis measuring the effects of participation processes initiated on the elderly persons involved. The results of the study show that it is possible to involve socially disadvantaged elderly people in participation processes geared to the specific social space. They also indicate that elderly people from different income groups increase their social capital in the context of enabling structures.

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