Residents at HC-One’s Hinckley Park Care Home, in Hinckley, Leicestershire, have been taking part in a letter-writing initiative to help people experiencing social isolation.
‘Letters Against Isolation’ is an American project that began during the Covid pandemic. Participants are encouraged to write letters to others around the world telling them about their lives and sharing their experiences. The aim is to tackle social isolation by setting up networks of correspondence.
The Hinckley Park residents decided to get involved after deciding that they wanted to make a positive contribution to improving other peoples lives. They have written about a variety of subjects: one resident, Shelley, wrote a letter about her love of music, including her favourite bands and a list of song recommendations for the recipient to look up. While residents don't expect a reply, many have included questions in their letters so that the recipient has something to talk about if they choose to respond.
Wellbeing Coordinator Rachael Gilliver, who arranged the letter writing, said:
"Letter writing is a lost art, and it's great to be able to spend time recapturing the magic of writing a letter and putting it in the post. We really enjoy writing these letters and we hope that they'll brighten up someone's day.
Residents write about everything and anything, from favourite holidays to what the weather has been like. We also include cards, postcards, and printed activity sheets so that whoever receives our letters gains a real insight into our lives here at Hinckley Park.
They've found letter writing to be both enjoyable and therapeutic, a chance to connect with someone we've never met. So far we have sent 22 letters, and will shortly be sending out Christmas cards too."
Barbara Allan, resident at Hinckley Park Care Home, said:
"This is a great way to be involved with the community, even the global community."