‘Covid has given people the excuse to reach out to their neighbours’

The people of Yorkshire have come together like never before but with more tough times looming, divisions could increase. Robyn Vinter reports.

COMMUNITIES MUST not “sit back and watch” as the sense of unity forged during the coronavirus lockdown fades, a campaign group has warned.

Researchers from the British Future think tank will soon be out speaking to people in Yorkshire face-to-face to find out how communities can go on in the spirit of togetherness that came as neighbours developed new bonds in the early weeks and months of the crisis.

It found that lockdown unity is fading – three-fifths of people said society tends to dwell too much on differences, while a similar number said the nation has lost the ability to talk about politics without getting angry and abusive.

Even though 80 per cent of people said it was important to meet people from different backgrounds, only a quarter said they often were able to do so.

However, British Future’s director of strategy, Jill Rutter, said: “We don’t have to sit back and watch that happen, though.

“We can work to keep hold of the few positives to have come out of this crisis – our realisation that we are at our best when we stick together.”

Its new project, talk/together, has launched a public consultation on what unites and divides the country, and will be speaking to people in person “when public health guidance allows it”.

Kim Leadbeater, the sister of Batley and Spen MP Jo Cox who was murdered in 2016, also urged people to keep “little acts of kindness and compassion” going as the region starts to recover from the pandemic.

“People are good in a crisis and, when we go through really tough times – I can speak from personal experience from when Jo was murdered – people show the best of humanity,” she said.

“Now our individual experiences are very different but, fundamentally, we are all under the same cloud and finding a way through this challenging time.

“The issues around mental health, loneliness and social isolation, are going to be issues in the coming months and years, and we need to pull together to make sure we minimise the impact of these really worrying things.”

Iona Lawrence, the founder of the Connection Coalition, added people have not stopped being lonely as the pandemic has eased.

She said: “Covid has really put pressure on people’s relationships and if you were likely to be lonely before, whether you’re old or young, you’re likely to have been lonelier during this time.”

She said there were “promising signs” that people were still doing the types of volunteering that often go under the radar, like helping a neighbour with shopping.

“I think what Covid has done is given lots of people the excuse that they’ve been waiting for to reach out to their neighbours.”

She urged everyone to consider making the first step as it is not too late to get to know neighbours or to help out in communities.

The British Red Cross said 41 per cent of adults had reported feeling lonelier since lockdown, and now was the time to ensure no-one was forgotten. Olivia Field, the charity’s lead on loneliness, said there needed to be continued efforts aimed at tackling loneliness and sustained government funding.

She added: “Not everyone has been able to benefit from the rise in neighbourliness, some people have felt left behind and have huge anxiety about reaching out to other people.”