Do you have a friend or neighbour who you think might like to meet up with other people for tea once a month on a Sunday afternoon? Contact the Elderly is a charity that organises monthly tea parties for people aged 75 and over. It's a lovely way of offering support to elderly people who live alone and may have no family or friends nearby. Volunteer drivers collect the guests and take them to tea in a volunteer host's home. Afternoons are fun and lively with good conversation (and good teas). The local group in and around N10 would love to welcome new guests. I'm a host and can tell you more, and put you in touch with Gilli Pettinger, the local N10 organiser.
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Thanks for that Ruth! I'll print something out and go knocking on my neighbours' doors. Hope Contact the Elderly still goes strong when I am over 75.
Ruth,
Are there any leaflets that I could collect aimed at users (the over 75s)? A couple of elderly neighbours of mine might be interested.
Hi Indijana, the best source of general info is the Contact the Elderly website (http://www.contact-the-elderly.org.uk). Any neighbours 75+ will be very welcome!
best regards, Ruth
Hi, do they have to live alone in the literal sense? My mother is in sheltered accommodation but such places can be lonely as well.
Hi Roslyn
Your mother will be very welcome to join the local Contact the Elderly tea party group! They're open to anyone (elderly) who's unable to get out much (usually because of physical or other difficulties). The tea parties are informal and you'd be welcome to come with your mother (sometimes one of the drivers brings a grandchild or a dog along, and neighbours might drop in with their children). The rota for the rest of this year is: Sunday 4 October (hosted by Haringey United Church), Sunday 1 November (private hosts in NW3), and Sunday 6 December (private hosts in N4). I'll be doing the January one at my home in N22. Each driver usually collects one guest and drives them home. Please get in touch if you'd like more info. Or I can give you the contact number for Gilli, the local organiser for the N10 group. Kind regards, Ruth
Thank you very much, Ruth. She doesn't normally go outside these days but I will talk to her about this as it would be good for her to meet more people... Out of interest how many people attend the tea parties and what time do they take place?
Regards, Roslyn
Hi Roslyn
Please do talk to your mother about this and encourage her to give it a try. I've been a host for 11 years (hosting 2 tea parties a year) and very much enjoy seeing "the ladies" and the drivers. There's a good level of interaction among the guests and with the drivers. The tea parties are usually the first Sunday of the month between 3–5pm (so guests are away from home for about 3 hours, allowing for travel time). At the moment I think we have 6 guests, all women ((one man once, some years back), all in their 80s and 90s. Most have difficulty walking but are otherwise well. They don't all come each time (depending on how they're feeling) so we might typically have 4–6 guests each time and 3–4 drivers. Each driver is responsible for their own 1 or 2 guests (collecting and taking them home) so they develop a close relationship with them. Let me know if you have other questions. Kind regards, Ruth
Very useful - thanks, Ruth. I don't drive so would someone be able to collect my mother if she agrees to attend? Regards, Roslyn
Hi Roslyn, absolutely! Each guest has an allocated driver who collects them, attends the tea party with them, and takes them home at the end of the afternoon. There are 3 or 4 drivers so if the regular driver is away one month, there's a back-up to make sure that a guest can always get to a tea party. Kind regards, Ruth