Department of Culture, Media and Sport / Every Mind Matters
Reducing the stigma of loneliness amongst young people
Loneliness.
It’s a part of life.
Let’s talk about it.
The challenge
We all feel lonely sometimes, but many young people feel uncomfortable acknowledging it, with 81% saying they would be ashamed to say they're lonely. This has led to misconceptions about the causes of loneliness and, ultimately, to stigma around it.
The Insight
Many young people feel uncomfortable admitting to feeling lonely, for fear of judgement, or being labelled as a lonely person.
Watch the 20s films
The Platform for Change
We needed to give loneliness a voice by revealing It's real and diverse causes - positioning it as part of life. Our social films drew on the lived experiences of 16-24 year olds, focusing the common life triggers of loneliness: leaving home, starting a new job, and scrolling on social media, with Influencer activity norming talking about the experience.
Impact
80%
of young people surveyed agreed the campaign normalises loneliness
young people would tell someone they trust if they’re feeling lonely, after seeing the campaign
293,000
441%
increase in visits to the Every Mind Matters website
Awards and Coverage
The campaign was nominated at the Global Influencer Awards and covered by The Standard and LBB Online, amongst others.