No Offer of a Cup of Tea, No Seat on the Bus...and Barely a Hello From Your Neighbour: Welcome to Today's Britain

4 Mar 2010 08:00 Africa/Lagos

No Offer of a Cup of Tea, No Seat on the Bus...and Barely a Hello From Your Neighbour: Welcome to Today's Britain

ANDOVER, England, March 4, 2010/PRNewswire/ -- A recent survey of the nation's local community and workplace habits carried out by healthcare provider Simplyhealth, has revealed us to be a nation that no longer cares about our community. Long gone are the days when Britons knew their neighbours by name - in fact, over half of modern day workers (52%) don't even offer to make a cup of tea for a colleague.


Almost half of us now only know a maximum of three neighbours by name. Tellingly, it's the 'over 55s' that can be bothered to get to know their neighbours with the majority (57%) on first name terms with at least five of their neighbours, whereas almost two-thirds of 'under 35s' know only two.


According to Simplyhealth's Bothered Britain survey of more than 1,000 UK adults, the main causes of people not bothering are lack of time and stress at work. However, despite the claim of "no time", over half the nation (56%) still manages to watch over 15 hours of television a week, instead of bothering to offer up an act of kindness. Other statistics revealed:



- 82% of people don't give up their seat on the bus or train
to someone who needs it more

- 61% of people admitted to never having volunteered for a charity

- 86% of the nation don't ever offer to carry someone else's bags




In fact, it seems that it now takes moments of extreme adversity to encourage any active acts of botheredness at all - 92% of us agree that it takes a crisis for people to show they care about one another, with 82% agreeing that the recent freezing weather conditions brought about a greater sense of community spirit - which now appears to have melted along with the snow.


This could be a reflection of modern life, with higher work expectations and frantic family lifestyles causing higher levels of stress and fatigue. However, carrying out good deeds for others can in fact have a positive impact on a person's health, as well as the surrounding community.


Medical expert Dr Christian Jessen agrees: "We all know that helping others is of benefit to them, but many people don't realise that getting active to help others can also improve your mental and physical wellbeing. Simple activities like walking the neighbour's dog or helping in the garden help to burn calories and improve general fitness, leading to a healthier, happier nation."


Jamie Wilson, spokesperson for Simplyhealth, says: "Committing just half an hour a month to helping someone else can make a real difference to your life as well as theirs. If everyone in the UK aimed to do just one act of 'botheredness' every month, it would make a real difference to the nation's overall wellbeing. As a healthcare provider, we encourage our staff to get active in the community supporting others - in fact we give 100 days a year to staff to spend a day helping at a charity of their choice."


Simplyhealth provides a variety of health plans, which help towards the cost of check-ups, treatment and emergencies, helping people budget for the costs of expected and unexpected healthcare. It also has a specialist Simplyhealth store that offers mobility and daily living aids.


For further information on Simplyhealth please bother us on +44(0)800-072-6715 or log onto http://www.simplyhealth.co.uk. In a world where so many people can't be bothered, Simplyhealth is proud to be a company that can, to find out how log onto http://www.wecanbebothered.co.uk.



Notes to Editor

- Previously known as HSA, BCWA, LHF, HealthSure and Totally
Active, our family of health companies have joined together over the
last 8 years to form Simplyhealth
- At Simplyhealth, we have been providing healthcare solutions for
nearly 140 years, dedicated to serving our customers through a variety
of cash plans, dental plans, private medical insurance, healthcare
trusts and mobility and living aids
- Simplyhealth is a trading name of Simplyhealth Access, which is
authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority
- As of December 2009, Simplyhealth had 1.3 million customers
providing cover for some 2.3 million people
- Simplyhealth is committed in its constitution to making a
positive impact on its communities. Each year, we help health related
charities and causes to the tune of at least GBP1million




For further information, please bother us at:


http://www.simplyhealth.co.uk/media-centre


Source: Simplyhealth

For further information, please bother us at: Abby Bowman, Senior Brand and PR Manager +44(0)1264-342561; Caroline Lakeman, Public Relations Manager +44(0)1264-342570; Rebecca Jeremy, Public Relations Assistant +44(0)1264-342400; Or pr@simplyhealth.co.uk.