Posted on: June 7, 2023
Loneliness Awareness Week is an annual campaign created by the Marmalade Trust which aims to raise awareness of loneliness in the UK. This year’s theme is Connection Matters. Human connections, no matter how big or small, are important to everyone.
At House of Books & Friends, we understand why connections matter. The person you always see on your commute, the delivery guy you often interact with, the barista that makes your morning coffee. Although not necessarily deep connections, these weak ties can keep us from feeling socially isolated. At the bookshop, we aim to cultivate these connections everyday, as well as creating meaningful conversation with our customers. It is important to us to raise awareness, improve understanding and reduce the stigma surrounding loneliness – and LAW 2023 is a great way to do that.
In our first six months, we have hosted a social evening, have a monthly book club, hold author events, are part of the Chatty Cafe scheme, and cultivated everyday connections.
What’s On: Loneliness Awareness Week 2023
Over the course of this week (12th-18th June) our social media channels will be full of content about Loneliness Awareness Week, and there’ll be some things going on in the bookshop, too!
Tuesday, 13th June: Chatty Tuesday
We’re inviting everyone in store to have a good chat – with our booksellers, between friends, or you can meet new people at our Chatty Cafe table! On social media, we’ll be asking people to share their stories about loneliness, and some of our booksellers will be talking about their experiences with feeling lonely.
Wednesday, 14th June: Charity Spotlight
We’ll be highlighting some of our favourite charities on our social media and showing what great work they do in alleviating social isolation and loneliness.
Thursday, 15th June: Book Recommendations on Loneliness and Connection
We’re talking books on loneliness and connection on Thursday, including a bookshop.org list for you to browse.
Friday, 16th June: Feedback Friday
We’re asking for your feedback! What you love about House of Books & Friends, what we can do better, if we’re a place where you have made connections. We’re always trying to do better and there’s no feedback we value more than our community’s.
As always, we’ll be signposting to services that can help you if you are feeling lonely and socially isolated. Please take a look at our resources page and Marmalade Trust’s website. The Cares Family have created a report all about building connections especially for Loneliness Awareness Week 2023, too.
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