Early years settings are helping to solve loneliness in their local areas by making links to isolated parents, older people, socially excluded teenagers and disadvantaged communities such as refugees. Meredith Jones Russell reports
Four LEYF settings, including Henry Fawcett Community Nursery in south London, runs the Teens and Toddlers programme
Four LEYF settings, including Henry Fawcett Community Nursery in south London, runs the Teens and Toddlers programme

Over nine million people in the UK – almost a fifth of the population – say they are always or often lonely, while research has shown that social isolation can be harmful to health. Lacking social connections is as much a risk factor for early death as smoking 15 cigarettes a day, while loneliness has been found to increase the likelihood of mortality by 26 per cent.

In order to combat this, chief executive of London Early Years Foundation (LEYF) June O’Sullivan believes nurseries should act as ‘community catalysts’ for engagement between different people living near each other.

‘Loneliness and isolation are reaching epidemic levels. In our small world, we can open up our doors to the community, create opportunities, open networks and build bridges between people,’ she explains.

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