The More in Common group in Llantwit Major, got people connecting at PoetryFest, PhotoFest and Chatty Book Club, alongside monthly Chatty Cafe, with the Great Winter Get Together in January 2022.
“I will not live in a country where thousands of people are living lonely lives, forgotten by the rest of us.” – Jo Cox MP
With research from the Jo Cox Foundation showing the vast majority of Brits (77%) still think there is a stigma around talking about loneliness, there’s never been a better time to get connecting than in the wake of the pandemic and the social isolation felt by so many.
Kicking off on Blue Monday (17 January) the Great Winter Get Together brought people together to help overcome any discomfort people feel talking about loneliness. In the Vale of Glamorgan, local volunteers got creative online and connected people who shared their poetry and photography in PoetryFest and PhotoFest in January. The gallery of photos and collection of Poetry are available online.
Online their Chatty Book Club also shared favourite books, picking its first book of 2022 for its next meet (Friday 18 March online using zoom).
While only a quarter of Brits (26%) feel comfortable telling a friend or relative about feeling lonely, half of us (48%) would feel positive if a friend or relative approached us for support. This suggests we are much more comfortable being there for a loved one than we are about asking for support ourselves.
Running its free Chatty Café year-round, members of the More in Common group in Llantwit Major know how important that connection is.
Mum and founder, Laura Henderson explains:
“As a first-time mum, I remember feeling suddenly adrift, without family close by and away from work and all the connections made there. Making an effort to make new friends takes time, energy and confidence. If you’ve lost a partner, are ill, away from home for the first time, have lost your job or are feeling anxious, all those life-changes can be really disconcerting and tough. It’s why we started Chatty Café– making a space to chat, relax and get to know other people – spurred on by the Jo Cox Loneliness Report findings. Multiply those factors by the pandemic, and having to keep physical distance, and you definitely know more people have struggled.”
Run by volunteers, Chatty Café in the coastal town welcomes anyone for a natter over a cuppa on the first Saturday of the month (10.30am – 11.30am) at CF61, Station Road, Llantwit Major. Their events saw connections made far beyond the Vale and Wales.
“We’ve been bowled over by the response to our Great Winter Get Together – particularly the heartfelt poetry penned by folk near and far for PoetryFest, with word spreading virtually and one of the nation’s most beloved poets Michael Rosen sharing our invitation to get involved on Twitter. The collection of poems is now published online.
We’ve connected with a fabulous group of volunteers running community activities elsewhere in Wales as a group. But individually people have voiced their feelings and reached out to others. We hope that we’ve helped start conversations around loneliness. We reach out to anyone who wants to pop along to Chatty Café to connect or to join us online for Chatty Book Club. The first step is often to talk to someone you trust.”
The Llantwit Major Chatty Cafe will be part of the town’s Jubilee celebrations in early June and they are planning a Great Get Together in July.
A toolkit of practical tips in English and Welsh is available on the Great Get Together website.
Find out more about More in Common Llantwit Major on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter or get in touch by email [email protected].