In 2006, 500,000 older people spent Christmas Day alone
The William Wilberforce Trust aims to build community for older people in the area. It is estimated that over a million people aged 65 and over report feeling lonely often or always and a similar number who feel trapped in their homes.
We work to identify those who are isolated and to connect them into the lifeline of services and activity in their local community. The 2011 report by the Centre for Social Justice on ‘The Age of Opportunity’ makes it clear that given how entrenched isolation has become, effective identification is going to require a far more intense level of active outreach than is currently occurring, on top of that simply knowing who are the most isolated is not enough. There is a level of relational support that goes beyond the statutory bodies that is required.
The William Wilberforce Trust is providing community and relational support through:
• Concerts and Teas for Older People and their Friends six times a year attended by over 400 people;
• Befriending – visiting an older person in their home regularly, doing a food shop for them or giving them a call to check up on them;
• Running workshops, Senior Alpha and befriending at local Care Homes;
• Practical projects – helping around the home including cleaning, gardening, painting or moving furniture.
