How the cost of living crisis is exacerbating loneliness - Su Moore

Being lonely doesn’t mean that you are alone - you can feel lonely even when surrounded by friends. Likewise, you can be alone and not lonely.

The way loneliness is defined is about a mismatch between the amount of social connection you have and the amount you want to have - and that is different for everyone.

Inspired by Jo Cox’s own passion and commitment to ‘turbo-charging’ the response to loneliness in this country, at The Jo Cox Foundation we continue to raise awareness of the issue.

Every January we run the Great Winter Get Together - a campaign all about getting people talking about loneliness, and reaching out to those around them.

While people’s calendars are often busy in December, January can be a difficult time for many - with fewer opportunities to socialise, tighter finances, and the days remaining cold and dark.

For this year’s Great Winter Get Together we are tackling loneliness through the power of community events, encouraging places of connection across the country.

The campaign launched on Monday, and will take place across two weeks, ending on 29 January. We have over 1000 events registered around the UK, including over 100 in Yorkshire.

Events range from winter walks to connecting around a campfire or community food sharing - there is something for everyone and, hopefully, many people looking for connection will be able to find a spark in their local community as a result.

At the Jo Cox Foundation we are always so impressed with how creative and inventive people are in finding ways to bring people together.

One great example is happening at Batley Library this Saturday where three local volunteer groups are teaming up to run The Great Winter Write Together, a special writing workshop. If you want to unleash some creativity this weekend, do join them.

As well as building connections on the day, the letters and poems written will be sent to bring a smile to a stranger who is feeling isolated. To find out more or locate your nearest event, visit our website map.

A key element of this year’s campaign has been encouraging events that are free to attend.

We know that the cost of living crisis is having an impact on people’s ability to socialise and our recent research shows that a quarter of Brits, 27 per cent, are feeling more lonely as a consequence. The crisis doesn’t impact everyone equally, though.

We are seeing that people from minority ethnic backgrounds are much more likely to be experiencing loneliness, 46 per cent, and young people are also suffering disproportionately.

At a time when people are less able to afford their usual social activities, including not being able to travel to spend time with friends and family, finding free ways to stay connected is particularly vital.

As we are raising awareness of loneliness this month, we also want to shine a light on the issue of youth loneliness. While it’s true that people of all ages experience loneliness, data continues to show that it’s the 18-24 age group who are experiencing loneliness most acutely. Though public perception remains that it is older people who are most lonely, our research shows that 80 per cent of young people felt lonely in the past month compared to 30 per cent of 65– 74-year-olds.

A great way of bringing young people together is through sport. As part of the Great Winter Get Together we’ve partnered with Goodgym, who are a brilliant organisation that combine getting fit with helping their communities. They have events taking place across Yorkshire over the coming weeks, from volunteering at parkrun to plogging (that’s litter picking while running, if you didn’t know!).

Making real, human connections with others is a vital experience for all of us. We want people to be able to find events and places where they can connect with others for little to no cost this January. Connecting with others doesn’t need to cost anything and we would encourage everyone to look for a Great Winter Get Together in their area, particularly if you are feeling isolated at the moment.

You can head to www.greatgettogether.org/map to find your nearest event, download free resources for schools, or find out more about setting up your own event.

Su Moore is the CEO of the Jo Cox Foundation.