Fine City Neighbours

Compassion in the Community is a campaign to help people in the community experiencing loss during lockdown.

We are four students from the University of East Anglia who want to help people dealing with grief and loss during the pandemic. By collecting information and resources produced by many charities and organisations, available locally and nationally, we have aimed to provide a comprehensive resource on the support available, whether you are experiencing loss yourself, or you want to support your neighbours.

Since the start of the first pandemic lockdown we have all experienced loss of some kind, and many of us are grieving those losses. Not only have we faced the struggles of being mandated to physically distance or isolate from other people, many of us have lost loved ones.

The death of a close friend or family member is always hard, but has been made all the more difficult by strict lockdown measures. Information on how to help yourself or to help a neighbour in the community through this time can be taxing to find, especially finding the right information for you. That is why we have started our campaign for compassion in the community.

We believe that community support is vital to staying healthy, both physically and mentally. In such trying times we would normally turn for comfort to our friends and families, but this has been so much more difficult.

However, even when our friends and families are far away, our neighbours are right next door. Strong communities are great for all of us and have been especially important during lockdown when we need someone to turn to for a much needed chat.

Conversations about grief can be difficult, especially if it’s a new experience. We want to help with taking away the stigmas that surround talking about loss by bringing together resources which show the support available, so that you can feel more confident to support your neighbours who have experienced loss.

Wellbeing

Humans are social creatures, and the danger with staying at home is that we become more isolated from other people, which isn’t great for our mental health. Here are some tips and resources for looking after your wellbeing and staying safe.