National campaign backed by former Prime Minister, Rt. Hon. Gordon Brown
As the country awakes to so-called Blue Monday, a campaign is being launched to highlight the importance of warmth and connection this winter.
Organisers say they hope that the initiative will allow people to find ‘Warm Welcome Spaces’ near to where they live. The Warm Welcome Week is being backed by the former Prime Minister, Rt. Hon. Gordon Brown.
Five thousand spaces are now registered with the campaign but organisers say that more work is needed to ensure everyone can find a place of warmth and belonging.
‘In the darkest and coldest times, Warm Welcome Spaces offer communities a chain of hope,’ says The Rt. Hon. Gordon Brown, Founding Patron for the Warm Welcome Campaign.
‘Without these community spaces, people would be at home with the heating off—and thus alone and in the cold. They offer more than just the warmth of heating, but the warmth of friendship.’
‘I want everyone to experience the joy of human warmth this winter at a local Warm Welcome Space.’
‘Join me in supporting Warm Welcome Week and spreading the word so that everyone knows there’s a Warm Welcome Space close to home. Together we can make every community a warmer, friendlier, and more hopeful place.’
Organisers say that around 66% of people in the UK live within a 30-minute walk of a Warm Welcome Space but add that only 20% of people are aware of where that is. More than five million people have visited a warm space in the last 12 months.
‘A vital role in connecting communities’
Within the past three months, the number of registered Warm Welcome Spaces has grown by 25% – from 4,000 to 5,000 spaces.
Campaign managers are aiming to give ‘Blue Monday’ a colourful makeover by asking people to wear warm colours and ‘get creative with pinks, oranges, reds, and purples to show their support and to raise awareness of Warm Welcome Spaces.’
‘We have already seen huge demand for Warm Welcome Spaces this January, not only supporting people struggling to pay the bills but also playing a vital role in connecting communities and giving people a place of belonging,’ explains David Barclay, Warm Welcome Campaign Director.
‘The dark winter days and nights of January can be extremely tough. We don’t want anyone to feel cold or alone this winter.’
‘We’re asking everyone to join us in Warm Welcome Week to raise awareness so more people can find a place of warmth and welcome and by encouraging more community spaces to open their doors to local people.’
‘Everyone can show their support by simply wearing bright warming colours of pinks, oranges, purples, and reds to represent the joy, positivity, and friendship found in every Warm Welcome Space.’
In recent years, ‘Blue Monday’ has become the term given to the third Monday of January as it’s considered to be a time whereby people can experience low moods.
Offering a warm, welcoming and safe space
Organisers are encouraging more pop-up community spaces to open, offering a warm, welcoming, and safe space for anyone in their community, particularly those experiencing loneliness and those who cannot afford to heat their home.
Over the last two weeks, when temperatures dipped to below freezing, another 100 community spaces registered as Warm Welcome Spaces, bringing the total number to over 5,000.
The Warm Welcome Campaign wants to grow the number of spaces, so everyone can access a Warm Welcome Space in their neighbourhood.
Warm Welcome Week is supported by the growing network of the Warm Welcome Campaign’s corporate partners, including Co-op, National Grid Electricity Distribution, OVO, Scottish & Southern Electricity Networks, and Sky Cares.
The Warm Welcome website hosts an interactive Warm Welcome Spaces map which helps people find their nearest space by simply entering their postcode.