Companionship and Befriending in Dublin: Helping Older Adults Live Well at Home
- saoirsesheridan
- Dec 2, 2025
- 4 min read
Updated: Dec 4, 2025
As people move into their late eighties and beyond, home can start to feel quieter, slower, and more limited. Mobility changes, confidence dips, long-time friends pass away, and familiar routines shrink. Many older adults in Dublin and across Ireland want to remain living in the comfort of their own home, but they also need regular social connection to stay well.
For adult children—often in their fifties, sixties, or seventies—who are supporting an ageing parent living alone, this raises an important question: How can we make life feel fuller, safer, and more connected for Mum or Dad, without taking away their independence?
Befriending Services in Dublin: A Gentle, Uplifting Support
Befriending services offer a simple but powerful start. A weekly visit or phone call can brighten a day, create structure, and remind an older adult that they are part of a wider world.
In Dublin, organisations such as ALONE, along with many local community groups, play a vital role in ensuring older adults feel seen and supported. A friendly chat, a cup of tea, or a check-in can genuinely lift mood and ease loneliness—especially for those who spend long stretches of time on their own.
For many families, this weekly connection feels reassuring. It adds warmth to the week.
But for older adults—especially those who are no longer going out by themselves—loneliness often returns once the visit ends. Homes that were once busy and full of life can feel very empty by late afternoon. Evenings stretch out. Confidence can dip. And the lack of daily conversation slowly narrows a person’s world.
Why Companionship Matters More After 85
Having worked with families for over ten years—and having been a home-share companion myself—I’ve seen first-hand how small, everyday interactions can transform an older adult’s wellbeing.
When an older person has very little social contact, days can blur together. A befriending visit becomes the bright point in the week. But what makes the biggest difference are the little moments of connection that happen more regularly:
chatting while the kettle boils
the sound of someone coming home in the evening
a simple conversation after dinner
a bit of help carrying in groceries or resetting a TV
These small interactions reassure the older person—but they also reassure their adult children, who simply want to know that Mum or Dad is not spending long evenings alone.
One family put it beautifully when they shared their experience with Elder Home Share:
“Elder Home Share was recommended to us from a few people. It proved to be a complete game changer for us as a family… Our lives changed for the better because of Elder Home Share. We can highly recommend Elder Home Share and wish them the very best for the future.”
These experiences highlight something essential: companionship in the home doesn’t just support the older adult— it brings peace of mind to the whole family.
When Weekly Visits Aren’t Enough for an Elderly Parent Living Alone
For some older adults, a weekly befriending visit is exactly the right level of support. For others—especially those aged 85+, living alone, or feeling less confident—more consistent daily companionship can make all the difference.
This does not mean they need full-time care, a nursing home, or a dramatic change. Often, they simply need:
regular presence in the home
conversation in the evenings
gentle reassurance
someone to share the rhythm of the day
This is where home sharing becomes such a balanced and effective solution.
Home Sharing in Dublin: A Safe, Respectful Alternative to Live-In Care
Home sharing is a structured arrangement that brings a carefully matched companion into the home to live alongside the older adult. In exchange for a spare bedroom, the companion offers:
company
evening and overnight presence
light practical help
day-to-day conversation
reassurance simply by being there
It is companionship, not care, and for many older adults in Dublin—and across Ireland—it provides exactly the right level of support: not too much, not too little, and always respectful of independence.
Families often tell us that home sharing restores a sense of ease and comfort to the home. Older adults feel less alone, their confidence grows, and their independence strengthens.
Adult children feel a weight lifted. They remain fully involved, but they no longer worry about Mum or Dad spending long evenings on their own. View Companion Profiles here.
Support in Dublin and Nationwide
While most of our matches take place in Dublin—where many older adults live alone and adult children are balancing busy city-based lives—we also support families nationwide. Whether your parent is in Cork, Galway, Limerick, Waterford, or anywhere in Ireland, home sharing offers the same gentle companionship and reassuring presence.
Wherever your parent lives, the goal is the same: to help them remain at home, independent and socially connected.
Befriending and Home Sharing: Two Paths to the Same Goal
Befriending lifts the week. Home sharing supports the day-to-day.
Together, they offer a human, compassionate response to the needs of older adults—especially those over 85—who want to remain in the home they love, while still feeling part of the world.
If You’re Supporting an Ageing Parent, You’re Already Doing an Exceptional Job
If you are a son or daughter worried about an elderly parent living alone in Dublin—or anywhere in Ireland—know this: you’re not alone, and you’re doing more than you realise.
A little support, whether through a befriending service, home sharing, or a combination of both, can make life:
fuller
safer
brighter
and more reassuring—for them and for you.
Elder Home Share is here to walk this path with you, with clarity, kindness, and ten years of experience helping families find the right balance of companionship and independence at home. As featured in the Irish Times
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