Marmalade Trust, the charity behind Loneliness Awareness Week, is the new official charity partner of Heineken UK.
To coincide with Loneliness Awareness Week, Heineken UK commissioned research which found that almost half (46%) of UK adults experience feelings of loneliness at least once a week.
Further to this, respondents were quite comfortable telling lies about their fake weekend social plans with friends: 40% saying they’d been to the pub, 36% claiming they’d been into town, and 34% saying they’d gone shopping with company.
So Heineken reckons that the adult population is longing for more moments of social interaction – and its new partnership with the Marmalade Trust will see them work together on a number of initiatives, including introducing loneliness awareness staff training within both organisations and raising awareness of the charity and its work through the Star Pubs & Bars estate and the wider hospitality industry, which is well placed to support social connections.
Those Star pubs wanting to get behind the charity will have access to free point-of-sale kits including double sided beer mats, conversation starter topics, and an easy-to-use fundraising QR code that customers can scan to donate directly to Marmalade Trust.
Lawson Mountstevens, Managing Director of Star Pubs & Bars at Heineken UK, said: “Most of us experience loneliness at some point in our lives, but the study shows almost half of us experience it on a weekly if not daily basis. While it’s nothing to be ashamed of, it’s something that we need to talk about and address.
“Social connections are key to helping people who are experiencing feelings of loneliness. Pubs are at the heart of communities. They are places where we can meet family and friends, make new connections, laugh, share problems, and build bonds with people over a cider or beer.
“Partnering with Marmalade Trust is a natural fit for us – we’re going to work together with them to build a more connected world.”
Founder of Marmalade Trust, Amy Perrin, added: “We’re thrilled to be partnering with Heineken on a cause which is incredibly important to both companies. At Marmalade Trust we know just how prevalent loneliness is amongst those living in the UK and we also know how important the role pubs play is in bringing people together and fostering connections.
“With Heineken’s support, we hope to be able to raise even more awareness of loneliness across all demographics in society, and most importantly continue to provide Brits with the resources that they need to feel and get more connected.”
