Lockdown loneliness rates in Leicester are one of the worst in England

Lockdown loneliness rates were about twice the national average in Leicester during the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a new study. 14.3 per cent of people in the city felt lonely between October 2020 and February of this year - almost twice England's average of 7.3 per cent, reveals data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The problem is worse in areas with high concentrations of younger people and higher rates of unemployment. Loneliness rates were almost always lower in the countryside compared with urban areas.