HARIBO UK and The Together Project Enter Second Year of Partnership Tackling Loneliness Across West Yorkshire

Songs & Smiles sessions are continuing to create intergenerational friendships and bring joy to West Yorkshire.

HARIBO UK and The Together Project have entered the second year of our partnership tackling loneliness across West Yorkshire. This follows a successful first year that saw the Songs & Smiles programme grow across the region with six locations established, bringing smiles to the faces of participants after each session.

Our partnership enters its second year as loneliness continues to affect communities across West Yorkshire and the UK. Official data shows that 8% of people living in Yorkshire and The Humber reported feeling lonely often or always compared to the national average of 7% making it one of the loneliest regions in England. Now more than ever, there is a continued need for opportunities that bring people together and build connections across generations.

Songs & Smiles is a weekly intergenerational music group held in local care homes, where singing, movement and play bring together older people, parents, carers and young children. The sessions are designed to reduce loneliness and strengthen community connections by creating opportunities for friendships across generations.

Feedback from participants shows the role the sessions can play in building that sense of connection, with 93% of residents and 97% of parents who attended agreeing that Songs & Smiles makes them feel more part of the community.

During the first year of the partnership, nearly 200 Songs & Smiles sessions took place, bringing together over 640 older people, parents, carers and young children across West Yorkshire. Care home staff also reported a positive impact on residents, with 97% saying Songs & Smiles makes residents happier and 73% saying it makes them calmer. Nearly half (49%) said the sessions increase residents’ energy.

HARIBO UK’s funding this year will help The Together Project build on the programme’s first year by strengthening its six existing Songs & Smiles locations, supporting its expansion into 6 additional care homes throughout the region in Morley, Garforth, Pudsey, Gipton, Wortley, and Gledhow. Having started in the region as a result of the HARIBO partnership, The Together Project has now managed to secure further funding to maintain these new sessions and continue to expand the strong impact they have made in West Yorkshire.

To celebrate the start of the partnership’s second year, HARIBO colleagues joined The Together Project for a special Songs & Smiles session at Castleford Lodge Care Home in Castleford. Photos capture moments from the sessions where residents and young families came together to sing, dance and play, marking what the partnership has achieved so far and the next stage of its work across West Yorkshire.

Following the session, Phil Murphy, Chief Marketing Officer at HARIBO UK, said: “We’re incredibly proud to be entering the second year of our partnership with The Together Project. Over the past year, we’ve seen first-hand the difference Songs & Smiles can make, bringing people of different generations together and creating moments of connection, friendship and childlike happiness across West Yorkshire.

“As a business that has called West Yorkshire home for more than 50 years, supporting our local community is part of who we are. We’re delighted that our continued funding will support the groups already bringing people together, while helping even more communities across the region benefit from Songs & Smiles.”

Alexa Sutheran, CEO of The Together Project, added: “We’re thrilled to be entering our second year of partnership with HARIBO and continuing to build intergenerational friendships across West Yorkshire.

“Committed partnerships like ours with HARIBO give charities the stability to embed programmes within communities and maximise their impact over time. HARIBO’s continued support will enable us to reach even more older people, families and care homes across West Yorkshire. Together, we’re creating joyful connections that help tackle loneliness and bring generations together.”

Melissa Cartlidge, Castleford Lodge Care Home said: “Songs & Smiles brings so much joy to Castleford Lodge, connecting our residents with local parents and children through music, conversation and play. We see a real difference after every session - residents are happier, more engaged and have smiles on their faces. Even those who aren’t able to actively take part enjoy listening to the music and being part of the atmosphere. It’s become a really important way of helping our home feel connected to our community in West Yorkshire.”