Struggling with loneliness? Ironically, you’re not alone. The Covid-19 lockdowns have created a ‘hidden pandemic’ of loneliness and mental ill-health, with 1 in 14 saying they ‘often’ felt lonely during the pandemic - up 40% from pre-Covid. That’s why the theme for this year’s Mental Health Awareness Week, a campaign run by the Mental Health Foundation, is loneliness.

One of the biggest problems we face is not opposition to the idea of supported homes for adults with long-term mental illness, but simply a lack of awareness about the scale and severity of need for these homes.