A September filled with friendship: Friendship Month 2023

Updated: 28 Jan 2025

This year’s Friendship Month was our biggest ever celebration of the benefits for friendship, with close to 250 taster events held nationwide.

Friendship framed at Bradford Oddfellows

A huge combined effort

The events were specifically designed to show off all the great things that happen at our wonderful branches and included walks, talks, coffee and cakes, arts and crafts, day trips, music and concerts and much more!

Jane Nelson, the Oddfellows' CEO, has reflected on branches’ efforts, saying: “All our branches have worked extremely hard to make every single one of our Friendship Month events a great success.

“Be it coffee mornings, music events, walks, meals or games, we’ve loved seeing the happy, smiling faces of people enjoying the benefits of friendship.

Happy faces at Friendship Month events around the country

“To everybody who attended, hosted or volunteered at our taster events this year, I’d like to say a big THANK YOU! It’s your hard work that ensures our continued success.”

This is what we do. It’s who we are. Jane Nelson, the Oddfellows' CEO

Jane added: “Friendship is a basic human need, and each and every person involved in making this year’s Friendship Month an unprecedented success can take pride in knowing that they have helped to make a positive difference in their community.

“This is what we do. It’s who we are. And it’s important that people know that we’re here if they need a friend, not just one month of the year, but always.”

Local success

During this year's Friendship Month, Preston Oddfellows successfully launched a new venue.

"It was so enjoyable to see so many new faces," said Social Organiser Colin Burbidge. "Most were new visitors to Oddfellows, others members or previous visitors attracted by the convenience of the new venue.

"Once settled, everyone seemed relaxed and one of my great pleasures is to see people getting over their nervousness and enjoying conversation with people they never met before.

"The whole experience is uplifting for everyone."

Coffee and cake with Vale of York Oddfellows

Meanwhile, down in Cardiff, Social Organiser at South Wales Oddfellows, Aimee Green, said: “We have welcomed friends old and new to Oddfellows South Wales Branch this Friendship Month. We have enjoyed crafts, cuppas and plenty of friendly conversation.

“We also raised £127.50 at one of our coffee mornings for Macmillan Cancer Support, which we’re really proud of.”

Assessing social circles

As part of this year’s campaign, we invited people to take stock of their current social circle to see if it’s where they wanted it to be and interrogate how they might be able to get more out of life through friendships.

Teaming up with chartered psychologist and later life coach, Dr Denise Taylor, we developed a ‘Friendship MOT’.

“The purpose of the Friendship MOT isn’t to make you feel negative, but to highlight areas so you may address them,” Dr Denise said. “And no matter what the outcome, there are plenty of opportunities to make changes and welcoming new friends into your life.”

All smiles at the Oswestry Branch of the Oddfellows.

We also commissioned a survey of 2,000 over 55s in the UK as part of our Friendship Month activities and looked into the social relationships of older adults.

It found that almost half of Brits in that age group (46 per cent) haven’t made a new significant friend in the last five years, with a further 46 per cent admitting they have lost touch with some.

Dr Denise added: “Friendships are vital to our social wellbeing and can have a direct impact on our physical and mental wellbeing. In fact, research suggests being socially disconnected is as bad for your health as smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day.

“But good social wellbeing is not just a case of meeting a certain quota of people around you, or sticking with friends you’ve known for a long time, it’s about ensuring you have the right people around you to meet your personal needs, right now.

“You could have dozens of friends but be missing that one pal to join you at the theatre, or you could be perfectly happy solo, but value the addition of a friend to help you in times of need.”

Year-round friendship

Jane says that what comes next is as important as Friendship Month, and making sure the Society is as accessible as possible is essential.

“It’s vital that we ensure we’re providing a space that welcomes anyone, but certainly those who might be older or retired. As we head into what’s going to be another tough winter for many, it’s more important than ever that we encourage more social interactions within our communities and provide spaces for that.

“We specialise in making our events affordable and accessible in the name of bringing people together. There should be no barriers to friendship.”

Nothing says the Oddfellows like a slice of cake, like this one here at South Wales Oddfellows.

Oddfellows friendship groups

If you didn’t manage to join us during September, there’s plenty more on the horizon. Your local Branch would love to welcome you, so why not discover what’s coming up in your area?

Our Branch Finder will help you find the group closest to you, or use our Events Finder to search for local and online social events and activities.

Contact us to request your free membership information pack and local events diary. And for information on the wider benefits of membership, head to the benefits page.