Bath Friendship Group Addresses Loneliness and Transforms Lives

A woman in Bath has established a friendship club aimed at combating loneliness among young women. Isobel Pinder, 24, also from Bath, launched “Let’s Go Girls” in May, and the initiative has already attracted 175 members. The group organizes various activities, including dog walks, embroidery sessions, camping weekends, and cocktail making, all designed to alleviate feelings of isolation. Molly Brown, 23, from Midsomer Norton, stated that the group had “changed her life.” Isobel explained that she personally struggled to form a female friend group, having spent her teenage years “consumed in music.” She recounted, “I became very isolated at school and locked myself away in a practice room and ended up being on the outside of groups of girls. “I decided that I was really missing something in my life. I had never had that female friendship. “When I moved back to Bath after university I noticed there is a whole community of women that want to do meet ups,” she said. She founded Let’s Go Girls to fill a “void” in her own life. Isobel, a country rock musician who performs under the name Isobel Holly, clarified that the group is open to anyone who identifies as female. She remarked, “We’ve had such a lovely group of women come together, all from different backgrounds and ages, but all want the same things – which is that genuine connection. “Female friendship stems around the idea of sisterhood and being able to share experiences.”There is nothing like having a girl gang,” she stated. Molly highlighted the significant positive influence the group has had on her. “I have been in some low places previously and it’s really suddenly something to look forward to.” She added, “I work for the ambulance service, and I don’t have much time or the same time as other people.” Molly continued, “Let’s Go Girls has given me something away from work. I very much found that I was in a position where I would go to work, I would come home and then I’d go to work again.” She concluded, “But it has given me a group of people that I can go and just be a young female with and we can just go and enjoy something new.”It gives my head a a break from work and that sort of escape.” She further noted that the group had “definitely” helped her with feelings of loneliness. “I went straight into healthcare once I left school and became quite work focused. “It was sort of like a realisation, that there are other people out there that feel the same way I do and we can actually communicate that quite comfortably, even though we struggle or have struggled previously to discuss that with the people already around us.” Molly participated in a camping weekend with the group and described the experience of women of diverse ages connecting and bonding as “really touching.” Olivia Bevan, 26, from Staffordshire, shared that the group assisted her in overcoming a “miserable time” after she relocated to Bath a year prior. She explained, “I’m quite a confident person, I don’t usually struggle to make friends but I moved to Bath this time last year and in the first five months I really, really struggled to make friends.” She attributed this to her work schedule, which involved “a combination of how I worked, a couple of days in an office and then a couple from home and I was living on my own.” She concluded, “I was quite miserable for the first little bit of living in Bath, really lonely, and it was winter as well.” Upon attending a Let’s Go Girls meet-up, she immediately formed friendships, noting that the variety of events offered makes the club accessible to everyone. “It really works, I made lasting friendships from literally the first event that I attended.” She affirmed, “It has enriched my life in a really positive way. I’m not sure I would have made those friendships without this club.” Isobel observed that many members of the group have articulated feelings of isolation and a desire for more fulfillment in their lives. She stated, “We’ve been able to have some really honest and open conversations with each other about loneliness and isolation during these meet ups.” Reflecting on her own journey, she added, “I found trying to be an artist full time really really difficult, and it was messing with my mental health and I was lonely. “Let’s Go Girls has given me a new outlook on life. I think I’ve got such a beautiful support network of people now.” She concluded, “It has changed my life, I now feel like I have a home in Bath, it’s given me a purpose.”