Befriending Vountary Service
With the winter months fast approaching and days turning quickly into nights loneliness can begin to creep in. Loneliness can affect the most vulnerable groups within our society. According to Age UK, more than 2 million people in England over the age of 75 live alone, and more than a million older people say they go over a month without speaking to a friend, neighbour or family member.
People can become socially isolated for a variety of reasons, such as getting older or weaker, no longer being the hub of their family, leaving the workplace, the deaths of spouses and friends, or through disability or illness.
Here at A Class Care we have worked with elderly clients for over 25 years providing a range of Live-In Care and Home Care services. With our combined experience, we recognise that social isolation/ loneliness can have detrimental effects on our clients psychological and physical health. Some symptoms of loneliness can include:
- Depression
- Anxiety
- High blood pressure
- Heart Disease
- Cognitive decline
Being estranged from a loved one is difficult for so many people. The elderly may have family or friends that have relocated therefore making it difficult to visit regularly. With the cost of living increasing and increased petrol costs it can make it difficult for loved ones to visit as often as they would like. We all know first-hand how the increased cost of living has had impact on our community.
We at A Class Care want to combat loneliness in our community and we want to help people that do not have access to regular visits. This is why from the month of November 22 to January 2023 we have pledged to provide 100 hours of free Befriending service.
What is the Befriending Service
Our befriending service is where our highly trained staff member, who are DBS checked, will arrange either a weekly 15-minute check call or a 30-minute face to face companionship visit.
We have created this initiative as we would like to help combat isolation whilst providing residents in our community the opportunity to see a friendly face, have a cup of tea and chat with someone that cares. We are offering this free Befriending Service in the following locations:
- Bedford – Mercy Canning, HR & Operations Director will be the befriender for this area
- St Neots – Elisha Earle, Services Manager will be the befriender for this area
- Cambridge – Nicola Jones, Care Director will be the befriender for this area
- Norfolk – Kayleigh Cox’s, Services Manager will be the befriender for this area
- Ipswich –Margaret Burgess, Services Manager will be the befriender for this area
- Ipswich South – William Moahyi, Services Manger will be the befriender for this area
- Suffolk Villages – Natalee Ripper, Acting Area Manager will be the befriender for this area How would you qualify
Who would be eligible
We would like to offer this service to those that are in need. To qualify, you would need:
- To Live alone
- Not able to access the community
- Be over the age of 65 years old
- Experienced a bereavement and need companionship
Not only are we able to provide this free befriending service but we are able to sign post you to community services such as:
If you are interested in finding out more, or you would like to make a referral to the Befriending Service then please send us your name, contact details and the reason that you require our befriending service. You can send your enquiry to befriend@aclasscare.co.uk
