CONNECT HACKNEY: TACKLING SOCIAL ISOLATION AMONGST OLDER PEOPLE Connect Hackney is a new six-year Big Lottery funded project which has been led by Hackney’s older people. To win this sizeable award of £5.8 million we surveyed almost 600 Hackney residents aged over fifty, held workshops and focus groups and worked closely with the Older People’s Reference Group (OPRG) to better understand the needs, skills and experiences of Hackney’s older population. Now that the funding has been secured we have set up an outcomes-based commissioning process to select the charities and community groups we will fund as part of the project. We spoke to Dr. Cynthia White, Chair of the OPRG and Connect Hackney steering group member to learn more. Why is it important to reduce social isolation? CW: Human beings are social animals who (in general) need to socialise. Unwanted, prolonged disconnection from the world around us has been proved to undermine our health and well-being and diminish our enjoyment of life. Where social isolation derives from inequalities and/or discrimination, it breaches our human rights and demands positive action to address it. What is the most exciting part of the project? CW: The prospect of having ‘new money’ to spend on interventions that can change people’s lives: that can replace despair with hope and encouragement; that can reach people who have been sidelined Dr. Cynthia White and condemned to a joyless, solitary existence, and recreate the stimulating human connections that can bring them support and comfort. How will Connect Hackney change public perceptions of older people? CW: It will present a faceless, voiceless, and socially disrespected cohort of residents in a new light. By building the capacity and motivation amongst older people that will allow them to be seen, heard, and universally involved in social policy-making and service delivery, Connect Hackney will, over time, help to deconstruct the prevailing, negative stereotypes of older people as passive and parasitical non-contributors to society and to the economy. Connect Hackney will ensure that older people are increasingly well-placed and equipped to speak up for themselves. What do you hope Connect Hackney will achieve in its six year lifespan? CW: The evolution of a local community in which many more older people who wish to do so can play a full, influential role in community life, with dignity and respect, be valued for their contribution, and enjoy the enhanced health, well-being and pleasure in life, that such involvement is known to confer. Contact: Judy Harris > [email protected]