Volunteer ‘befrienders’ are available at a cafe for anyone fancying some company or a listening ear over a cuppa.
They are at the Head Room community café in Golders Green Road, Golders Green, from 2 to 4pm Monday to Thursday or from 10am to 12noon Wednesday to Friday for a one-to-one chat.
The café - run by the Jami charity, now part of Jewish Care - already organises daily programmes of community activities.
But some people might prefer one-to-one contact rather than group sessions, the charity has found.
“They find group events too big for them,” the charity’s Gideon Levy explained. “So we’ve trained 12 new ‘befrienders’ who are here for people to chat to and enjoy some friendly company.
“They usually have a sign on their table welcoming people to join them.”
Caryn Cobersy is one of Head Room’s new ‘befrienders’, and says is happy to “play board games or just listen”.
She said: “I am here for anyone at the café to have a chat and to make someone smile and feel a bit better, especially if they’re feeling lonely or isolated.”
The charity is also aiming to improve mental wellbeing in the workplace, following on from this year’s World Mental Health Day. It runs ‘mental health first aid’ training to support work colleagues who may be having issues.
Part of the duty of care of employers is to make sure mental health is looked after at work, the charity points out.
Jewish Care is also stepping up to the plate on the serious issue of suicide. It has been working with Barnet Council on a new guide to help voluntary, faith and enterprise communities affected by suspected suicide. The guide, Coping After Suicide, provides a step-by-step approach on how to respond effectively and compassionately.
Jewish Care now touches the lives of 12,000 people a week in London and the South East, supporting those living alone and also helping Holocaust survivors and refugees to combat loneliness and isolation by making sure they stay in contact with the community. The charity also provides nursing, end-of-life and respite care and retirement schemes for the elderly to live independently with support.
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