How did we get here?

Chichester City has a higher than national average in every age band above 65.

The late MP Jo Cox raised concerns about a ‘silent epidemic’ which resulted in a Parliamentary Commission on Loneliness, highlighting the timely nature of our charity.

We mapped local services and identified gaps in provision.

We held listening exercises with:

Local care homes also highlighted their lack of staffing capacity to satisfactorily meet the emotional and spiritual needs of their room-bound residents, i.e. those who cannot be moved to join in with group activities

NHS managers identified loneliness and concerns about end of life among many of their home-bound patients which they cannot alleviate for lack of sufficient staffing capacity with the appropriate range of skills, as their primary focus is on meeting the health needs of older people.

Local health and social care professionals advised us that older people often experience a sense of social isolation, loneliness and fearfulness, which impacts negatively on their sense of well being.