What is Be Connected
In 2020, the world faced a global crisis owing to COVID 19. The pandemic prevented people from leaving their properties and mixing with others, which led to more of us feeling socially isolated. In Hull, the figure for those experiencing loneliness was around 12.5% of adults, larger than that of East Yorkshire, York and Leeds, highlighting the need for change.
In 2021, the Loneliness Network (now known as Be Connected Network) was established by Hull CVS to help organisations to come together to find new ways to help those who feel most isolated. From the Network’s work and wider discussions with social prescribers, the local authority and the Older Peoples Partnership Hull and East Riding, we have established a number of opportunities for the city to best tackle loneliness and help those suffering access better social connection.
Following funding received through the DCMS Know Your Neighbourhood Fund, Be Connected has been expanded to include projects and activities which helps to reduce loneliness and isolation in the city through:
- Talking Tables within venues across the city, helping people to come together, share in meaningful conversation and create a stronger and more connected Hull.
- Silver Socials that connects likeminded people with shared interests to undertake activities which helps to improve confidence and wellbeing, create lasting friendships and memories.
- Wonder’ull Sunday Dinners which provides a safe space for people who normally be alone to come, converse and eat together.
Who manages Be Connected?
Be Connected is managed by Hull Community and Voluntary Services (Hull CVS).
Hull CVS has been an established organisation in Hull since 1981, and aims to support the development of voluntary and community groups and volunteering in Hull.
As advocates for community voice, volunteering and community empowerment, Hull CVS also directly deliver a number of community based projects and actively work to attract additional resource in to the local VCSE sector, be it through:
- working with businesses to offer grants and employee supported volunteering to the sector
- providing funding pathways from the public and statutory sectors to VCSE organisations
- bringing together networks of VCSE organisations to be better positioned to work in collaboration for opportunities.
How is Be Connected Funded?
Be Connected has been funded through the DCMS Know Your Neighbourhood Fund which runs until the end of March 2025. A key focus of the fund is to generate and share learning on how people in disadvantaged areas can be supported to volunteer and improve their social connections, which will help to support sustained action beyond the lifetime of the fund.
The objectives of the Know Your Neighbourhood Fund are:
- To increase the proportion of people in targeted high-deprivation local authorities who volunteer at least once a month.
- To reduce the proportion of chronically lonely people in targeted high-deprivation local authorities who lack desired level of social connections.
- To build the evidence to identify scalable and sustainable place-based interventions that work in increasing regular volunteering and reducing chronic loneliness.
- To enable targeted high-deprivation local authorities, and the local voluntary and community sector in these places, to implement sustainable systems and processes that encourage volunteering and tackling loneliness.