Loneliness Awareness Week is the world’s largest campaign to inspire conversations about loneliness and promote connection activities happening across the world. It’s hosted by Marmalade Trust, and runs from 15th June to 21 June 2026.
Like The Links Group, Marmalade Trust is a small charity making a big impact. An award-winning loneliness charity for all ages, the Trust is dedicated to raising awareness of loneliness and supporting people to find new social connections. Since 2013, they have directly helped thousands of people and have reached millions more, with a mission to create a society where we recognise that loneliness exists and support each other to make new connections.
The name was inspired by none other than Paddington Bear, and we think that’s not the only animal connection! Veterinary and animal welfare professionals, as well as health care professionals worldwide recognise the importance of the Human-Animal Bond in helping to tackle loneliness and social isolation. From pets to assistance and therapy animals, animals can have a positive effect on the physical and mental health of the people in their lives, as research on The Pet Effect from the Human Animal Bond Research Institution (HABRI) and their founder Zoetis demonstrates.
You can help combat loneliness by doing anything you can to bring people together and make those essential connections. Get involved and join the movement of thousands of people worldwide raising awareness on social media and holding connection activities or events, and by fundraising.
Why not do something at your practice, school or workplace this Loneliness Awareness Week? Ideas and suggestions can be found here, with a whole toolkit of resources available here. It could be as simple as following or supporting one of the ideas “Connecting With Nature” resource, which states, “With a pet; feed, stroke, talk, groom, and cleaning up. If you don’t have a pet, visit a pet shop or animal shelter to learn about their care & connection.”
The Links Group Learning Hub provides a free webinar by Dr. Elizabeth Ormerod on the Human-Animal Bond, kindly provided by our supporters at the Society for Companion Animal Studies (SCAS). You can watch for free (and spam-free!) during Loneliness Awareness Week by registering here and clicking on the Resources tab.
Marmalade Trust also provide training and information on loneliness. More details can be found on their website.
