Guidance

Loneliness Engagement Fund

The Loneliness Engagement Fund provides small grants between £15,000 and £50,000 to organisations who can engage with target groups at high risk of loneliness.

• From: Department for Culture, Media and Sport and Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport
• Published: 15 September 2021
• Last updated: 10 February 2022 — See all updates

Documents

Guidance for applicants

HTML

Details

Please note: this fund is now closed for applications and details on the beneficiaries can be seen below.

Purpose and aim of this fund

Feeling lonely is something we can all relate to, but admitting we feel lonely can be much harder. The government’s loneliness communications activity targets a broad audience, recognising that anyone can feel lonely, and that we all have the power to help those around us.

The objective of the Loneliness Engagement Fund was to reach the groups in England most affected by loneliness during COVID-19 with communications and engagement activity that will help reduce feelings of stigma, and encourage people to take steps to help themselves and others.

This fund has awarded grants of between £17,000 and £50,000 to nine organisations.

The beneficiaries of the Loneliness Engagement Fund are:

• British Deaf Association has received £20,500 to deliver live-streamed events, videos and information sessions in British Sign Language to raise awareness of loneliness and support options within the deaf community.
• Gaydio has received £17,000 to deliver online podcasts and audio packages exploring LGBTQ+ loneliness.
• Jo Cox Foundation received £34,000 to conduct research on how to engage with 16-24 year olds on loneliness, and use this to reach more young people through their Great Winter Get Together campaign.
• Made by Mortals received £25,000 to co-create and disseminate podcasts with people with lived experience of loneliness.
• Mencap received £44,500 to conduct research into experiences of loneliness during the pandemic amongst people with learning disabilities to inform a 2022 mental health campaign.
• National Autistic Society received £30,000 to develop new content on loneliness for autistic people and run a campaign on social media.
• National Youth Theatre received £23,000 to support young people to develop creative work that highlights experiences of loneliness, and share this with a wider audience across wider channels.
• RNIB received £49,500 to create new content on loneliness for people who are blind and partially sighted, and develop resources to support volunteers to engage with their networks on loneliness.
• Shift.MS received £20,000 to conduct research to better understand loneliness amongst people with multiple sclerosis, and use this to develop engaging content on social media.

Published 15 September 2021
Last updated 10 February 2022 + show all updates

1. 10 February 2022

   The Loneliness Engagement Fund is no longer live. This page has been updated to include a description of the 9 successful projects.

2. 15 September 2021

   First published.