Loneliness Awareness Week 2026: Celebrating Connection Through Community Transport

Last week, from 15th–21st June, we proudly marked Loneliness Awareness Week by celebrating the power of connection, friendship, and community.

Throughout the week, we spent time with our service users, listening to their stories and reflecting on the positive impact that community transport has on their lives. It was a wonderful opportunity to bring people together, share experiences, and highlight how important social connections are for wellbeing.

As part of our celebrations, we treated service users to lunch outings at No.7 Café, Rushmere, and the Banville Hotel. Both venues were amazing hosts, and we would like to extend our sincere thanks for their warm welcome and hospitality.

The lunches provided more than just a chance to enjoy treats, they created valuable opportunities for people to connect, chat, and share their experiences. We heard many inspiring stories about friendships formed through community transport and how these connections have helped reduce feelings of loneliness and isolation.

One service user shared:

“You just can’t imagine how much it means to me to get out during the week and see my friends and get to the shops.”

Hearing stories like this reminds us why our service is so important. For many people, community transport is much more than a journey from one place to another, it is a lifeline that helps them stay connected to their communities, maintain independence, and build meaningful relationships.

During our networking sessions, we also gathered feedback through surveys. We were delighted to find that:

100% of respondents said that community transport has had a positive impact on their lives and helped reduce feelings of loneliness and isolation.

These results reinforce the vital role that accessible transport plays in supporting social inclusion and improving quality of life.

We want to thank all our service users, volunteers, staff, partners, and supporters who help make these connections possible every day. Together, we are building stronger communities where everyone has the opportunity to stay connected, make friends, and feel part of their community.

A huge thank you also goes to Grace, our Transport and Accounts Officer, who organised a very special project with the pupils of St Francis Primary School as part of Loneliness Awareness Week.

The children created beautiful handmade cards for our service users, filled with colourful drawings, thoughtful pictures, and heartfelt messages of kindness and friendship. The cards brought smiles to so many faces and reminded our service users that they are valued members of the wider community.

The thoughtful gesture helped create connections across generations and demonstrated how small acts of kindness can make a big difference in tackling loneliness and isolation.

Thank you so much to Ebony who was on work experience with us last week! She did an amazing job completing surveys with service users, chatting and helping us out!! We will miss you!

We would like to extend our sincere thanks to all the pupils and staff at St Francis Primary School for taking the time to support this initiative. Your creativity, kindness and community spirit were greatly appreciated by everyone who received a card.

Watch our video below see the impact community transport has on the lives of those we support.