Tackling the growing crisis of lonely men:exploring what works through Time to Shine

Men are living longer; while this isgood news, findings show an increasein loneliness among this group. The JoCox Commission on Loneliness (2017)estimate that eight million men feellonely at least once a week, while fornearly three million, it's a dailyoccurrence; one in ten men said theywould not admit to feeling lonely.This document explores ways in whichTime to Shine (TTS) has successfully

targeted and engaged older men.While social participation among thisgroup will be influenced by a rangeof factors, such as employmenthistory, health, culture and lifechanges (e.g. retirement orbereavement), older men havedistinct needs that will impact on thesuccess of interventions which aimto reduce loneliness.

Introduction

Run by Leeds Older People's ForumTTS aims to tackle social isolation andloneliness amongst the olderpopulation in Leeds. Third sectororganisations across Leeds arecommissioned to deliver a range ofprojects, locally and citywide, to helppeople make social connections.TTS is part of the Ageing Betterprogramme, a £82 million investmentby the Big Lottery Fund, covering 14areas of England.

How has Time to Shine Targeted men

A number of TTS projects havesuccessfully engaged men. A few,although aimed at the generalpopulation, have successfully attracteda relatively large proportion of mendue to what is on offer (such asvolunteering for the ICT project, DigitalAngels). Other projects have createdactivities with the needs of older menin mind (Cara and More than aMealtime), and others have targetedmen exclusively (Your Warehouse,That Friday Feeling goes Gardening,Men's breakfast Club, Happy Panda,see timetoshineleeds.org/about/our-delivery-partners for moreinformation).

Main outcomes for older men

Though activities across TTSprojects vary, men who wereinterviewed appreciated having theopportunity to interact with others.Being involved in something (be thatvolunteering, or attending a groupactivity) provided company, gavemen confidence, and made themhappier. Those involved involunteering reported being morecontent, focused and active. Oneman involved in a practical activity(gardening) referred to feeling betterin himself:

“I feel I have my self-worth back andequally important I have things tolook forward to.”

The Time to Shine programme

Practical activities

Projects which successfully engagedmen offered a range of practicalactivities, such as gardening and DIY.A man involved in a communitygardening project explained howreconnecting with his hobby (whichhad stopped due to the death of afriend and health problems) had madea difference:

“Suddenly I have new friends withcommon interests, have somewhere togo, and am doing things again.It's literally changed my life around.”(That Friday feeling)

Having the opportunity to use skills tosupport others

Enabling men to share skills wasviewed by some as key to buildingself-esteem; this could be through agroup discussion, or being given theopportunity to use existing, anddevelop new practical skills:

“The funds have…enabled us to equipthe men with further knowledge,especially around the growing of vegwhich some are keen to expand on …in their own home environments.”

Volunteering

Offering an activity where men feltuseful, such as teaching skills toothers (ICT training), helping out in acharity shop (Your Warehouse), orbeing a befriender (Cara), proved tobe effective. For example, menencouraged to volunteer in a localcharity shop felt happier, as it keptthem active and useful.

Activities that are of interest to older men

Group based activities

One project, The Breakfast Club,involves men meeting as a group toplay games (such as dominos), read,or simply have a chat. The success ofthis project shows that despiteresearch identifying that men are lesslikely to get involved in group activities,they may do so if the right environmentis created. In this case, the projectsupported attendance by providing afree meal, and the coordinator textedmen to remind them the activity wastaking place (this worked particularlywell for those living with dementia, orwho struggled to plan due to ill health):

“I would not be able to attend anearlier event without food beingprovided, as due to health issues bythe time [I’d] got out of bed, got ready,and had food, it would be too late.”

Activities that factor in culturalpreferences

Participants involved with Cara, aproject aimed at older Irish men, feltthat feelings of loneliness werelinked to cultural factors. Forexample, a male participant referredto the importance of hearing an Irishvoice on the radio. The projecttherefore facilitates a range ofactivities designed to offer broadappeal to Irish men, focusing onboth culture (i.e. Irish heritage) andgender, such as showing Irish films,or holding events in an Irish pub.

Positive Promotion

We found that offering activities whichappeal to men is not sufficient, with aninterviewee saying that the hardestpart was getting men to givesomething a go in the first place.Good practice examples relate togoing where men go, such as the pub,working men's club, or even placessuch as the local supermarket.

Both participants and staff felt itimportant to avoid using terms withnegative connotations (whenpromoting an activity), particularly assome men were viewed as being tooproud to ask for help:

“There is a stigma as loneliness isassociated with failure, some do notask for help due to pride.”

Provide a supportive environment

To ensure men continue to attendactivities, participants and workersoften referred to the importance ofproviding a supportive environment:

“[The men] live on their own anddon't see family often so they valuesomewhere they feel comfortable.”

Engaging older men

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Another found engagement increasedif extra encouragement was given atearly stages:

“Men have needed support … toattend, this might be a phone callthrough to support in getting to thegroup.”

Another discussed how little touchescan increase ongoing engagementthrough ensuring men feel valued:

“The extra touches such as cardswhen individuals are unwell, or homevisits has meant the over 50s men feelappreciated and valued for the helpthey are giving.”

Ensure men feel they have somethingto offer

Examples include presenting anactivity as if the person is doing afavour for the organisation; this workedespecially well for an interventionwhere men were encouraged tovolunteer in a charity shop:

“One day the staff were struggling toget something down off a shelf andasked if I could help and it just took offfrom there…now they can't get rid ofme!”

While men may not all enjoy the samethings, offering practical activities,volunteering opportunities, andongoing support proved particularly

effective. It is also necessary to thinkabout how to encourage men to getinvolved in the first place.

Links to other reports and further information:Wigfield, A and Alden, S. 2017 Evaluation of Time to Shine: Year 2: Interim Findingshttps://timetoshineleeds.org/projects/local-evaluation.

Also check out the Time to Shine programme website on:https://www.timetoshineleeds.org

Summary