Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they are taking to support elderly people who live secluded lives.

The Department is raising awareness of the issue and helping local health and wellbeing boards and commissioners to get better at measuring the issue in their local communities. This will help them come up with the right targeted solutions, and drive local improvements that really make a difference.

A measure of social isolation will be published this year as part of the Adult Social Care Outcomes Framework to raise visibility and to support local authorities to address the issue of social isolation in their local communities. This measure will be shared with the Public Health Outcomes Framework.

The Department is also working with a number of organisations including the Campaign to End Loneliness and the Royal Voluntary Service to promote ways to tackle loneliness, and the Silverline who provide a helpline offering support to older people.