Loneliness is insidious. Mother Theresa said, “Of all the diseases I have known, loneliness is the worst”. Presenting a greater risk to premature death than smoking, alcohol and obesity. Increasing the length of recovery time from illness and disease. At least 1 in 4 Australians are lonely.

We all know it. We are, by nature social creatures. Feeling connected to another human is as important to us as air and water. In fact, being socially connected leads to a 50% reduction of risk in mortality.

And those 2 million people each year that visit our Community Centres know this. We focus on “social scaffolding”, working with innovation and in partnerships with our members to nurture in person, positive relationships that have meaning to the individual and contribute to our social identity, sense of self and sense of belonging. Hammering loneliness person by person, community by community.