York warm spaces helping tackle loneliness in the City

Volunteers say isolation is a huge problem facing many people

Author: Kathy GreenPublished 3rd Jan 2023

We're hearing how York's warm spaces are helping to tackle loneliness in the City.

Dozens of places have opened their doors in the last few months to people struggling to afford their heating at home.

Josie Knowles runs one at St Deny's Church Hall and says many of the people coming through their doors are very lonely: "It's not just about finances, it can be that people have been isolated for such a long time that it can be that social skills have been forgotten." She says everyone is welcome and it doesn't matter what age you are or what background you have: "We have a young girl who comes in who is 14 years-old up to someone who is 93. I couldn't tell you what we talk because we never know, there is never an agenda. People come in and it's not long before they forge friendships."

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