Laura Ferguson, Director of Campaign to End Loneliness, discusses the human context to the new Age Action Alliance. It is likely that you understand what it feels to be lonely. It is a human emotion that many of us have experience of at some point in our lives. But how many of us really understand…
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Monthly Archives: September 2011
‘Save our Buses’ promotes a connected later life
Sophie Allain from the Campaign for Better Transport explains how public transport is vital to maintaining an independent and connected later life. Local buses provide a vital public service all over the country taking people to work and training, linking people to amenities and shops, and enabling people to keep in touch with friends and…
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Virtually Friends
I recently re-introduced my 85-year-old Grandma to email. She had once used it for a while, but increasingly sporadic use meant we needed a refresher session on using the internet and her email provider. This return to email was partly prompted by the Christchurch earthquake last February. With phone lines not working, she was unable…
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Research, ‘Risk Factors’ and Loneliness
Last week Stonewall publicised research findings that indicated lesbian, gay and bisexual people in Britain were more likely to be lonelier in older age than heterosexual people. This was, they concluded, because they were more likely to live alone, be childless and have less contact with family as they grew older. There are factors that…
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Where is this place called “lonely street”?
Majeed Neky from Living Streets explores how streets and neighbourhoods are crucial social spaces. “I live on an estate at the edge of a small town. It is half an hour’s walk to my library, post office, doctors and polling station and I am in an urban area. Where I work there are post offices…
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Campaign to End Loneliness Walk
Age Concern Southampton held a ‘Campaign to End Loneliness Walk’ on August 20th as part of the Southampton Over 50s Festival. Age Concern Southampton staff, volunteers and clients met outside the Guildhall and carried placards with slogans such as ‘End Loneliness!’ and ‘Live Life to the Full!’ They marched down the high street, attracting attention…
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Loneliness in the United Kingdom
Last month, a survey conducted by Yours magazine asked whether people living in the United Kingdom had lost “the art of making friends”. The answer, they concluded, was probably yes. Six out of 10 respondents aged over 50 said they felt lonely, with the average individual spending half the week on their own. This rose…
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