If you are keen to help tackle loneliness among young people in your neighbourhood, we’ve compiled a range of free online materials that you can use to spread the word and raise awareness about the problem, and help young people to overcome destructive feelings of isolation and loneliness. These include:

  • Further research, data and information about loneliness
  • Advice for children and young people
  • Advice for parents, carers and other adults worried about lonely youngsters
  • Advice for charities and other organisations about ensuring their project helps to reduce loneliness
  • A Powerpoint presentation you can use to share this information with your local community

Advice for children and young people

Youtube films:

  • Cambridge University researcher Olivia Remes delivered a TEDx Talk in Newcastle called How to get rid of loneliness and become happy.
  • In this short film from WhizzKids, the Kidz Board discuss work they are doing to address loneliness. They share their own personal experiences and solutions for tackling loneliness among young wheelchair users. View the video here

Advice for parents, carers and other adults 

  • Action for Children has produced tips for parents who may be struggling with loneliness themselves or worried about their kids. View the article here
  • Mumsnet has a thread about loneliness on its forums page here.
  • HuffPost has an article for parents about how to tell if your child is feeling lonely and what you might do to help them.
  • The NSPCC also has some tips for parents on this page.
  • If you suspect a child or young person is being bullied, the Anti-Bullying Alliance has published a guide for parents and carersBracknell Forest Council also has one here

Youtube films:

  • Dutch researcher Gerine Lodder delivered a TEDx Talk in Groningen called What you don't know about adolescent loneliness which identifies three main causes of adolescent loneliness and the importance of breaking the taboos surrounding it  
  • With funding from John Lyon’s Charity, Exposure worked with students from North London over three months to develop creative responses to youth loneliness. Four short videos were produced. This is the entire collection.
  • That’s Manchester TV reports on The Loneliness Project, an initiative from a group of local charities working with 14 to 25-year-olds in Manchester to discover where loneliness comes from
  • Co-founder of No Isolation, Karen Dolva, delivered a talk at TEDxArendal in Norway called All the lonely people which presents her solutions to the loneliness epidemic: creating technology that fosters face-to-face interactions, and talking about the problem

Advice for charities and organisations

NPC, the think tank that helps charities increase their impact, has produced a top tips guide to help organisations ensure that their project reduces loneliness – this could be of particular assistance to Neighbourhood Watch groups. 

At the end of 2017 Action for Children published It starts with hello, a practitioners' toolkit.

Youtube films

In this film by social enterprise RJ Working, teams of restorative coaches at three schools in Cornwall co-designed a consultation workshop for Year 7 about loneliness, social media and outdoor spaces. View the video here.   

Further information

Youtube films