This campaign has now closed
Celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2023, Meet Me at the Albany is an arts club empowering Lewisham residents aged 65+. Born of the question ‘What if isolated older people could go to an arts centre instead of a day centre?’, Meet Me uses arts activities to promote wellbeing & combat isolation.
Categories
Beneficiaries
Situation
Lewisham’s older population is at high risk of experiencing social isolation & loneliness: 10,000+ people aged 65+ live alone in Lewisham (Age UK), with Public Health Lewisham predicting that up to 3,492 older residents feel lonely often or always. The pandemic has only exacerbated this. Research from the Centre for Ageing Better shows that 36% of older people felt deteriorating mental health due to limits on social contact and access to the things they enjoy (rising to 43% for lone dwellers).
Solution
Meet Me at the Albany will combat this by bringing local people aged 65+ together to experience much-needed creativity & connection, through weekly in-person sessions and twice-weekly telephone sessions to reach those who can’t attend in person. Members lead on all programme aspects, leading regular feedback meetings to decide on the activities on offer. This will ensure they regularly engage in activities they enjoy on their own terms, improving their mental health/wellbeing/social contact.
