Loneliness in the UK

30 November 2012

Loneliness in the UK

In research carried out by WRVS in 2012 for The Times it was discovered that 250,000 elderly people will be alone and lonely on Christmas day 2012.

They also found that a third of all over 75s usually spend more than 12 hours a day on their own every day. One in 10 of the over 75s say they feel "intensely lonely all of the time."
Source The Times online accessed 30th Nov 2012 http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/public/timesappeal/article3614770.ece

In additional research conducted by WRVS and published in July 2012 they found:

13 per cent of older people don’t get out and about in their communities because they are unable to leave the house due to ill health; and 15 per cent cited having no one to accompany them and that they don’t like to go out alone.
As a result of feeling lonely 17 per cent of those surveyed said that they had lost touch with friends and 46 per cent said that they don’t go out as much; 26 per cent reported giving up on their hobbies because of feeling lonely.
21 per cent of those who are lonely agreed that they don’t leave the house for days, nine per cent that they no longer eat properly.
One in eight older people who are lonely said they worry about their mental health because they have no-one to talk to.

Source http://www.wrvs.org.uk/news-and-events/news/loneliness-rife-among-older-men

In a survey of various loneliness research reports the Campaign to End Loneliness found:

An estimated 1 million people over 65 who are always lonely
half of all older people (about 5 million) say the television is their main company
17% of older people are in contact with family, friends and neighbours less than once a week and 11% are in contact less than once a month
36% of people aged 65 and over in the UK feel out of touch with the pace of modern life and 9% say they feel cut off from society.
Source http://www.campaigntoendloneliness.org.uk/information-on-loneliness/loneliness-research/

In 2010 the Mental Health Foundation conducted research on the topic of loneliness in society today. As part of the research project Opinion Research LLP was asked to survey a representative sample of adults. Below is a summary of some of their findings.

How Often Do You feel Lonely?

	Total	Age 18-34 Yrs	Age 35-54 yrs	Age 55yrs+
Often	11%	12%	11%	9%
Sometimes	34%	45%	35%	26%
Rarely	33%	31%	32%	36%
Never	22%	13%	22%	29%

Have you ever felt depressed because you felt alone?

	Total	Age 18-34 Yrs	Age 35-54 yrs	Age 55yrs+
Yes	42%	53%	43%	32%
No	55%	44%	54%	66%
Don't Know	3%	4%	4%	2%

Have you ever experienced depression or anxiety?

	Total	Age 18-34 Yrs	Age 35-54 yrs	Age 55yrs+
Yes	56%	55%	61%	53%
No	39%	38%	35%	44%
Don't know	5%	7%	4%	3%

Thinking about when you experienced depression or anxiety… Did it result in you isolating yourself from family and friends?

	Total	Age 18-34 Yrs	Age 35-54 yrs	Age 55yrs+
Yes	57%	64%	65%	42%
No	40%	31%	33%	54%
Don't know	3%	5%	2%	4%

How strongly do you agree/disagree with the following statement… I worry about feeling lonely.

	Total	Age 18-34 Yrs	Age 35-54 yrs	Age 55yrs+
Strongly agree	6%	10%	7%	3%
Agree	18%	26%	16%	14%
Neither	23%	23%	23%	22%
Disagree	24%	24%	24%	24%
Strongly disagree	26%	15%	27%	35%
Don't know	2%	2%	2%	1%