The shortlisted projects in this awards category are:

Good Neighbours Scheme, Peterborough
Managed by the Salvation Army and based in Peterborough, the Good Neighbours Scheme is an innovative befriending and support programme for older people who live alone.  Two part time outreach workers and around 50 volunteer befrienders offer flexible support to recently bereaved, isolated or lonely local residents.

The project aims to support independent living, reduce social and emotional isolation by increasing social interaction and encouraging healthy lifestyles. The project has good working relationships with a range of statutory agencies and where necessary will make referrals to social services, local mental health and housing agencies.

MRBC Parish Nursing, Felixstowe
Maidstone Road Baptist Church (MRBC) in Suffolk provides holistic care - social, medical and pastoral - to the community around their church and to the elderly in particular, through a parish nurse and a team of trained volunteers. They provide care which extends to areas that are not covered by conventional statutory facilities, to people of all ages and backgrounds and. Assisting individuals with issues such as grief and worry, those who need help understanding medical procedures and options or who are physically unable to get themselves to the doctor or hospital.
 
St Margaret’s House, Polmont
St Margaret’s House in Polmont, Scotland provides long term specialist dementia care in a residential setting for older adults. Originally set up in 1987 and run by Crossreach, they seek to creatively meet the needs of individuals in a person centred way celebrating both their individuality and need for fulfilment.

They strongly believe that there are many different ways effective communication is possible with people who have dementia and seek to identify outcomes from the service users and relatives. In 2008 St Margaret’s was awarded the Chartermark recognises excellence in customer service. 

The Geoff Ashcroft Community, Wapping
The Geoff Ashcroft Community is an intentional, non-residential community, which seeks to break the cycle of hospital admission, discharge and then re-admission for people mental health difficulties. Recognising the exceptionally high incidence of hospital admissions for people with mental health problems living in Tower Hamlets in London, the project builds a community and support network around vulnerable individuals to offer a place of belonging, safety and confidence from which growth can take place.
 
The Link Visiting Scheme, Wokingham
The Link Visiting Scheme runs activities and arranges home visits for isolated elderly people in Wokingham Borough. A team 110 volunteers from local churches and communities visit those most isolated in their community on a weekly or fortnightly basis. The visits are often a lifeline for clients who rarely see other people during their normal week. In addition to regular visits activities are arranged and offered for the physically mobile to take part in afternoon teas, outings, Understanding Computers sessions or the Pie & Pint Club for single, older men.

The project signposts clients to other services where appropriate and measures the impact of the scheme through annual anonymous surveys, asking clients for feedback of the effectiveness and benefits. The visiting scheme works in partnership with 15 churches and has close links with Age Concern, statutory and voluntary agencies who provide referrals and Wokingham Borough Council, who currently fund some of their core costs.