We all know what it like to feel lonely, but did you know that around 1 million older people regularly go an entire month without speaking to anyone?
At Age UK one of the ways we try to beat loneliness in later life is through our befriending services. Here, we explain how befriending works, and meet some of the older people whove benefitted from befriending, as well as some of the amazing volunteers who make this vital service possible.
The problem of loneliness in later life
Loneliness is a massive issue for people in later life in the UK. Half of all people aged 75 and over live alone, and 1 in 10 people aged 65 or over say they are always or often feel lonely – that just over a million people.
Shockingly, half of all older people consider the television their main form of company.
Joy, 88, from Stockport, found herself on her own after her husband passed away: My husband died and left me on my own. I managed to cope with things and get by at first. But in the last two years it got very lonely and miserable. I saw my daughter once a week, but the rest of the time I was on my own with nobody to talk to. I thought, “This cant go on with me by myselfâ€.
– Read what happened next to Joy
– Call in Time – read Barbara story
Age UK befriending services
To tackle the problem of loneliness among older people, Age UK has developed befriending services. The service works by assigning each older person a befriender, who provides friendly conversation and companionship on a regular basis over a long period of time.
Many local Age UKs provide befriending services, some by telephone and some where a volunteer visits the older person at their home. This vital service provides a link to the outside world and often acts as a gateway for other services and valuable support.
Age UK also provides a telephone befriending service called Call in Time, which consists of a regular daily or weekly phone call. The relationship is structured so that each befriender makes the call at a regular pre-agreed time. All befrienders are volunteers, who freely give up their time to help lonely older people.
– Find out more about Age UK telephone befriending service
– Meet the befrienders
– Read why befriending is so important
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