Blackbox Solutions was proud to sponsor The Pilgrims’ Friend Society’s Chief Executive, Stephen Hammersley, £500 as he undertook a gruelling 357 mile cycle ride across the south of England to raise awareness of the problem of loneliness amongst older people.

The Pilgrims’ Friend Society – a valued client of Blackbox Solutions – runs six residential care homes in the UK, provides residential housing for the older generation and trains and encourages people and churches to care for older people in the community.

Chief Executive Stephen Hammersely was keen to shine the spotlight on loneliness amongst the older generation and chose to embark upon a sponsored cycle ride to do this. With his son Phillip as his cycling partner, the 357 mile trek saw the guys stop off at all six residential care homes from Plymouth to Brighton where they were cheered on by the many happy residents.

Loneliness continues to be a major issue in this country, with four million older people in the UK having the television as their main form of contact with another person. According to a survey carried out for the Jo Cox Commission on Loneliness, almost three-quarters of older people in the UK are lonely or lacking companionship. Indeed, more than half of those have never spoken to anyone about how they feel.

Colin Ayres, Operations Manager at Blackbox Solutions, said: “We were more than happy to support Stephen and Phillip’s cycling challenge and raise awareness for such an important and worthwhile issue. Well done both – we look forward to details of the next challenge!”

For more information on The Pilgrims’ Friend Society please visit – https://www.pilgrimsfriend.org.uk/