Lockdown was eased nearly half a year ago. Why are millions of people in the UK still chronically lonely?

With new restrictions on the horizon, a charity is warning that levels of loneliness may rise again. Kate Ng finds out why so many people still feel this way

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In April this year, figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed levels of loneliness in the UK had been on the rise since spring 2020. The number of people who reported feeling lonely “often” or “always” had increased from around 2.6 million people in April 2020 to around 3.7 million between October 2020 to February 2021.

The pervasive feeling of loneliness that blanketed the nation came as people were forced into isolation due to the coronavirus pandemic. Tight restrictions stopped people from meeting up with one another or going about regular activities such as school and work. The public were told to stay at home to avoid spreading the virus and for many, there were only virtual means of keeping in touch with others.

Then in July, almost all Covid restrictions were eased across the country and people were allowed to socialise freely after months of following strict rules around who they could see and where they could go. People were reunited with loved ones, social plans could go ahead once more, employees returned to the office and life seemed to resume almost as normally as it did before.