{
  "id": 4807126,
  "title": "Thinktank reports epidemic of loneliness among England’s ‘disconnected’ young",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/01/thinktank-reports-epidemic-of-loneliness-among-englands-disconnected",
  "topic": "health",
  "section": "Health & Medicine",
  "published": "2026-09-01T07:00:48.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Guardian Health",
    "slug": "guardian-health",
    "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/society/2026/sep/01/thinktank-reports-epidemic-of-loneliness-among-englands-disconnected-young"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A new report by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) has highlighted an epidemic of loneliness among England's young people, particularly those aged 11 to 24. The number of young people with no close friends has surged fivefold since 2014, rising from one in 100 to one in 20. Among 16- to 21-year-olds, the proportion with at least three close friends fell from 85% to 72% over the same period.\n\nThe report attributes this sharp decline in wellbeing to several factors, including youth club closures, unaffordable housing, the popularity of social media platforms like TikTok, and a loss of self-esteem among young people. The foundations of a good adolescence have eroded, with a generation of young people growing up in a \"bleak world\" dominated by austerity, the pandemic, and social media.\n\nOther contributing factors include the erosion of youth clubs, unaffordable housing, the rise of \"Neets\" (young adults not in education, employment, or training), and the prolonged adolescence due to delayed transitions to adulthood. The report also notes that young people's relationships have become less strong, with the proportion of 14- and 15-year-olds completely or very happy with their friendships dropping from 86% to 76%.\n\nThe IPPR's findings are supported by research conducted by Prof Eamon McCrory, who identified \"social thinning\" as a primary driver of increased mental health issues among young people. Social thinning refers to the loss of in-person social interaction between adolescents as their real-world social ecology collapses. The report emphasizes that the disconnection experienced by today's young people is a result of political choices made in the name of neoliberalism, which have reshaped society and public services in ways that leave young people feeling unsupported and disconnected.",
  "summary": "Youth club closures, unaffordable housing and social media cited as factors contributing to a sharp decline in wellbeing The number of young people with no close friends has risen fivefold since 2014 as a result of growing up in a “bleak world” dominated by austerity, the pandemic and social media. New research paints a sobering picture of how 11- to 24-year-olds in England are increasingly…",
  "key_points": [
    "Loneliness epidemic among England's young people, aged 11-24",
    "One in 20 young people have no close friends, up from one in 100 in 2014",
    "Factors include youth club closures, social media, and austerity"
  ],
  "editors_take": "The erosion of youth services and societal changes driven by austerity and neoliberalism have reshaped England's social landscape, leaving a generation of young people feeling unsupported, disconnected, and increasingly lonely.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}