MORE than half of adults in Scotland who feel lonely fear something will happen to them and no one will notice, according to new research.

The British Red Cross (BRC) polled more than 4,000 UK adults and found half of people in Scotland feel always, often or sometimes lonely, with 56 per cent of lonely people fearing something bad happening to them would go unnoticed.

The survey found 35 per cent of people say they often feel alone, like they have no one to turn to, while 64 per cent said their loneliness is having a negative impact on their life, and 60 per cent worry their loneliness will get worse.

Of those spoken to, 34 per cent said they have no strategies for coping with their loneliness.

In Scotland, the BRC has been working with the Campaign to End Loneliness, Age Scotland and Chest Heart and Stroke Scotland, to form the Action Group on Isolation and Loneliness, a new organisation committed to tackling the epidemic.

Marie Hayes, director of independent living at BRC, said: “We all need someone to turn to in a crisis, but our research suggests there are people feeling they lack meaningful connections.”

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