MP meets Eastlight entrepreneurs tackling social isolation

Priti Patel, the MP for the Witham Constituency, has visited the Witham team working as part of Eastlight's trailblazing All In community programme. 

The Witham Team, which consists of five members, are tackling the social isolation affecting residents in Witham. They sat down with Priti at Templars Hub in Witham on Friday 14 October to fill her in on their progress so far.

All In puts power in the hands of the local people who understand their communities better than anyone. Eastlight has recruited four All In teams of five local people to dedicate a year of their life to one goal; the creation of a bold solution that tackles a major social issue impacting their community. The second part of their mission is to make their bold solution happen. The Witham team has been researching their subject, including having an event at URC and a pop up stall outside of the Witham Hub in the Grove Centre, to talk to local people about their experiences of social isolation.

After the meeting, Priti said: “I was very pleased to meet the Witham team. They have a subject that is very high on my agenda following the experiences we all had during the Covid pandemic, which certainly exacerbated the problem. People living alone, especially the elderly, are particularly vulnerable to becoming isolated and it is something that we as a society have a responsibility to tackle and I’m very encouraged by the progress the Witham Team is making.”

Community Entrepreneur, Joanne Jackson said: “It was great to see Priti and to have the opportunity to talk her through our progress on this important issue. We look forward to making a real impression on social isolation for the community of Witham and having Priti’s support means a lot.”

To find out more about the All In, please visit www.weareallin.co.uk