Small Acts of Kindness/Ipsos data continues to show the impact of winter, energy costs and the rising cost of living on older people surveyed.

On behalf of Hertfordshire-based charity Small Acts of Kindness, Ipsos conducted a survey and analysis among 618 participants across Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire through questionnaires distributed to those receiving either a Warm in Winter gift bag or a Bag of Kindness during the winter months of October through December 2025.

Small Acts of Kindness is a charity dedicated to making a positive difference by helping to reduce loneliness and isolation for vulnerable and older people, particularly those who are cold in their homes, helping to lessen the associated negative impact on physical and mental wellbeing that being cold brings.

From October 2025, the ‘Warm in Winter’ bags and ‘Bags of Kindness’ were distributed to nominated older and vulnerable residents across Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire. Each bag contained a variety of items designed to provide comfort and support during the winter, including warm clothing, blankets, drinks, and a ‘Purple Pages Information Pack’ that signposts recipients to essential information, advice and support. Bag recipients are nominated by those in their community, and the contents are provided through sponsorship and funding to Small Acts of Kindness. Bags are gifted free of charge to recipients.

Each bag distributed contained a paper questionnaire and recipients were asked to complete and return the questionnaire to Ipsos via a pre-paid postage envelope. So long as a questionnaire is returned and at least partially completed between October 2025 and December 2025, the respondent’s views are included in the analysis.  

Most recipients expressed positive feelings about receiving the bags. Coupled with this, there were mentions of the impact of the rising cost of living on the day-to-day choices of respondents.  

Key findings from the feedback forms include:

• More than half (51%) of respondents receiving the ‘Warm in Winter’ or ‘Bags of Kindness’ spontaneously said they found ‘everything’ or ‘almost everything’ contained within them useful (51%). Among the useful items highlighted were warm clothing (67%), food items (16%),  and the information pack (15%).
• When asked how receiving this gift made them feel in an open-ended question where participants were able to provide their verbatim response, most respondents expressed positive emotions. 60% provided descriptions relating to feeling good, happy, delighted or of being cheered up, 21% pointed to the fact that the gift was unexpected or a surprise. Around 1 in 6 respondents (15%) expressed feeling loved or being thought of, that someone cared and 23% expressed how grateful and appreciative they felt.
• Nearly 9 in 10 (88%) found the Purple Pages Information Pack useful, consistent with 2024 results (89%).
• A vast majority (95%) believed it important that organisations and charities produce printed information for their customers or people they deal with.
• Feelings of isolation were reported by 64% of respondents, with 50% feeling isolated "some of the time”, 12% "most of the time”, and 2% "all of the time”.
• More than twice as many respondents agreed (61%) than disagreed (19%) that "the TV and/or Radio is my main source of company."
• 4 in 5 respondents stated that the rising cost of living is having a negative impact on them with 12% indicating this impact was large.
• Similarly, 4 in 5 respondents stated that the rising cost of energy is having a negative impact on them with 24% indicating this impact was large.
• The increase in the cost of living has affected respondents heating (74%) and the food they buy (68%).
   

Lynne Misner, CEO of Small Acts of Kindness stated:

We extend our heartfelt thanks to the team at Ipsos for all their help, support and expertise in creating our feedback questionnaires and analysing the data. This has meant that we have been able to gain a timely and valuable insight into the challenges facing older people surveyed, particularly over the winter. This data not only enables us to understand the impact of our gift bags but also ensures that we can target the right support to those who need it the most.

The success of the Small Acts of Kindness initiatives underscores the importance of simple acts of generosity in fostering a sense of community and well-being, particularly among older and vulnerable populations. Small Acts of Kindness remains dedicated to these campaigns to continue creating a positive impact.

Ipsos UK funded this research on behalf of  Small Acts of Kindness through their Responding Responsibly CSR days, providing the design and setup of the survey, questionnaire design, and analysis, for their ‘Warm in Winter’ and ‘Bags of Kindness’ campaigns in Winter 2025. These initiatives primarily support older residents in Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire.  

For more information, contact Kendra Jones, Head of Client Success at Ipsos UK Channel Performance – [email protected] or Lynne Misner, CEO & Founder at Small Acts of Kindness – [email protected] 

Technical Note

On behalf of Small Acts of Kindness, Ipsos carried out a survey among 618 participants who had received a “Warm in Winter” bag or a “Bag of Kindness” bag between October and December 2025.  Given the sensitive nature of the questionnaire, respondents were not required to answer all of the questions; the data includes completed and partially completed surveys. The analysis of data is, therefore, based on 618 respondents who opted in by choosing to return their questionnaire. Recipients of these bags are nominated by those in their community. Each gift bag contained a paper questionnaire which participants were asked to complete and return to Ipsos using the pre-paid envelope provided.  A comparison is made with results from a previous wave of this survey which utilised the same methodology and was carried out among 546 respondents between November and December 2024.  

This survey was funded by Ipsos as part of their “Responding responsibly” initiative and Ipsos was responsible for the set-up of the survey, questionnaire design and the analysis and reporting of the survey results.