The Government’s announced a Minister for Loneliness – in response to our call for action
Today two of our colleagues – Adele Jones from Funeralcare in Swansea, who runs a social group for bereaved people, and Barry Clavin (Ethics Sustainability and Campaigns Lead), are going to a Downing Street reception hosted by the Prime Minister, to celebrate the newly created position of Minister for Loneliness.
Adele Jones (Funeralcare), Barry Clavin, (Co-op Ethics, Sustainability and Campaigns Lead), Naomi Phillips (British Red Cross), Vicky Day (British Red Cross Community Connector).
We recommended that a specific person in Government was needed to tackle loneliness, in our recent Call to Action report that we co-produced as members of the Jo Cox Commission. The report was released in December and as a result, Tracey Crouch MP is now the Minister responsible for tackling loneliness.
Thanks to the money our colleagues and members have raised, our British Red Cross Community Connectors are supporting thousands of people across the UK who are lonely. The strategy announced today means that millions more people will now be helped.
Find out more in this blog post by our Policy and Campaigns Director Paul Gerrard.
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Hi I work as and arranger in Stone Funeral care, I am very keen to be involved by starting a group here in Stone Staffordshire. Who I do I contact within Coop to discuss my plans, and is any funding available.
Paul
Hi Paul. Thanks for getting in touch. It’s great you’re keen to get involved. All the info you need about bereavement clubs and how to start one is here on the Intranet – http://theintranet.lb.live.co-op.local/Content/ContentPage.aspx?id=116077&epslanguage=en-GB
^Lara
I love this idea, but always have to doubt that this lady will actually achieve more than just ticking a box. She will be judged by her actions and I hope she is genuine, motivated and can help drive change and positive action.
So few people know what it feels like to go home and be alone, night after night, day after day. I hate it.
Hi there. I’m really sorry to hear you’re feeling like this. If you’re a Co-op colleague, you can get 24/7 support from our Employee Assistance programme. It’s free, confidential, and can be accessed any time of the day or night on 0800 069 8854. The service is provided by LifeWorks, an independent third party.
If you’re not a Co-op colleague, you can still get support – contact the British Red Cross on 0300 456 1155 or find out more here: http://www.redcross.org.uk/What-we-do/Health-and-social-care/Independent-living/Loneliness-and-isolation/Response ”
^Lara
I saw this in the news but didn’t realise the Co-op had such a big role in it – make sure to shout about it!
Amazing news!!! This will help so many people across the UK who suffer from being alone. glad to see that something has been done about this. Positive movements!