Blog

Laura Marks OBE, Founder and Chair of Mitzvah Day, writes for us about Mitzvah Day 2018, which took place last month and marked the 10th anniversary of the event. What could be more welcoming than a bowl of chicken soup? The traditional dish, served as […]

We all have mental health. Some have great mental health, while, periodically, others struggle with their mental health. And all of this is perfectly normal. What is identity? Identity is who we are. It can be made up of our features – the way we […]

You’ve probably heard the statistic. Social isolation is as bad for us as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. It has more of an impact on life expectancy than obesity. And many of us can probably identify with the complaint that we spend too much time […]

‘I’m not depressed any more. I have friends. I go out of my house. This class has made the difference: learning with fun and friends!’ – Learner Not only are socially isolated individuals more prone to depression, loneliness also increases the likelihood of mortality by 26%. […]

Sometimes being on the outside of a situation gives us a better perspective; there can be real wisdom in hearing alternative voices and gaining insight. But when an outside philosophy or world-view is imposed by one group on another without any semblance of adaptation or […]

Recently I spoke to Keith Banda, the Mission Action Plan Coordinator for Ascension Church in Salford. Ascension Church is one of our members delivering our Creative English classes after purchasing a licence. It is part of the Church of England and has been delivering Creative […]

The Chancellor Philip Hammond had to somehow make good this week on Theresa May’s announcement at the Conservative Party conference that austerity is coming to an end. The budget he has come up with – called ‘populist’ by some – is characterised by tax cuts […]

Currently, the main media outlets have been highlighting the various issues surrounding rogue landlords from the private rented sector. Although most landlords are honest law-abiding citizens, some are not. Tenants have been suffering at the hands of unscrupulous landlords who demand monthly payments, but do […]

Monday, the 16th of October; the day the Government announced A connected society – A strategy for tackling loneliness. A day that we hope will help to change the health and well-being of millions of adults and young people living in the UK. Prime Minister […]

This summer, I was faced with the tragic news that a friend had died, suddenly and unexpectedly. It would be fair to say the cause of death was a combination of depression, isolation, and a crushing of dreams. My grief was such that, in the […]