*Previously known as the Anti-Loneliness Strategy* ## Meetings - [[TLS Strategy Meeting 6.12.22]] - [[Meeting with Prof Phil Wheater December 2022 ]] ## Approaches - Take a [[Health Impact Assessments]] approach ([[Public Health Approach]]) - But also get on with doing something sooner rather than later. Focus on [[Students with disabilities]]. ## Key barriers to success - Knowledge/ Skills - Evaluation/ data analysis - Public Health / HIA knowledge - Capacity. ## Principles - Signpost, don't recreate. If we can use other resources from other charities/ organisations/ groups (including the university) then we should do. - Action focus *in addition to* a theoretical focus. - Using academic engagement to defeat loneliness seems like a good idea (i.e create connection to others under the guise of the course) ## Activities - Organisations can: - Foster climates of trust and connection - Set up spaces where people can come together - Help individuals to feel included - Build a strategy for intervention, with benchmark KPIs - Develop partnerships with community groups, charities, and families. - Embed social connection in internal policies, practices, programmes and evaluations. - Organisational leaders can: - Understand the forms that loneliness can take (see 1.2 above) - Talk openly about loneliness to address the stigma - Universities and educational institutions can: - Build loneliness into the curricula - Develop inclusive pedagogies, such as group learning - Develop peer-support groups - Community groups can broadly make three types of intervention: - Put on activities that encourage friendship (social interaction) through arts, culture, music and social activities etc. - Give people the skills to be better at making friends (social support) through befriending, mentoring and peer-support programmes. - Therapy and psychological interventions, such as counselling. - Community groups can also: - Develop public education and awareness efforts - Provide education, resources and support programmes for beneficiaries - Create opportunities for spaces and inclusive social connection - Create a culture of inclusion across a broader partnership of community institutions. ## See also - See [[Loneliness]] for the broader picture. - See [[Loneliness in Students]] for specifics on Salford and National data. - See [[Why are students lonely?]] - See [[SI-PASS Peer Mentoring]] - See [[barriers to participation or engagement in the SU]]. - Lack of money, Time poverty and not knowing what's available are the principal barriers identified through the [[Alterline Student Research 2022]]. - "joining" a group can be perceived to be a barrier. Do the micro-volunteering piece. - Socio-economic background and protected characteristics also comes into play here- don't feel that groups are inclusive. - Personal life, such as single parent, disability/ disabled dependent - Clique. Alcohol involvement. - Money - Consider [[EAST Model of Behaviour Change]]