How to get involved with ‘Postcards of Kindness’

"Postcards of Kindness" is a wonderful initiative that encourages people to write and send postcards to residents of care homes across the UK, with the aim of combatting loneliness.

Initially a small project set up in 2018 by Your Health Limited (which runs a number of residential and nursing homes), it has since gained momentum and now has hundreds of participating care homes.

With social distancing measures in place as a result of coronavirus, getting involved with this initiative is a great way to help brighten someone’s day, during what is a particularly difficult time for many.

You can find out more about "Postcards of Kindness" by joining their private Facebook Group. Here you will find helpful guidance, including on how to choose a care home from their database, suggestions on what to write in your postcard, and advice on what not to include or keep to a minimum (such as your personal details).

Creating your postcards

If you have postcards at home already that’s great, but we recognise that getting hold of certain things at the moment can be a bit challenging.
To help you create your own, we have put together a few simple tips below.

Postcard sizing:

The standard postcard size is 6 inches x 4 inches, roughly A6 size. A piece of A6 paper/card is one quarter of an A4 sized piece of paper/card. However, you could make your card slightly larger if you'd prefer.
Standard 'letter' size for posting with the Royal Mail is 9.4 inches x 6.4 inches, cards larger than this will be classed as a 'large letter' when posting.

Card ideas:

If you have any old greetings cards, cut the front picture off and write on the back - you may need to resize this depending on the size of the card.
Use recycled card (packaging etc.) to create a postcard - you may have to paint/draw etc. on a piece of paper first and then glue to the card.
Make a postcard with card from your craft stash (sizing information above)
If you have an envelope, seal the envelope and design a picture on the front. The text and address can then go on the back.

Designing the front of your postcard:

You might want to take inspiration from the craft corner on My WI.

Brush Lettering: https://mywi.thewi.org.uk/interests/craft/project-library/other-makes/brush-lettering

Create your own stamps: https://mywi.thewi.org.uk/interests/craft/project-library/other-makes/create-your-own-stamps

Watercolour Dog and Flowers: https://mywi.thewi.org.uk/interests/craft/project-library/other-makes/watercolour-dog-and-flowers

Watercolour Venetian Style: https://mywi.thewi.org.uk/interests/craft/makes-of-the-month/venetian-style-in-watercolour

Flower Power: https://mywi.thewi.org.uk/interests/craft/crafts-beautiful-projects/flower-hour

Twine Flowers: https://mywi.thewi.org.uk/interests/craft/crafts-beautiful-projects/twine-flowers-card

Garden Card: https://mywi.thewi.org.uk/interests/craft/crafts-beautiful-projects/garden-card

Please note: As these cards have embellishments, they would need to be sent in an envelope.

Sending your postcard

We would suggest using a post box to send your postcard to help care home staff maintain their social distancing and shielding measures. Royal Mail is still collecting from as many post boxes as possible. For further information about how Royal Mail is responding to Covid-19, please visit: https://www.royalmail.com/d8/uk-services-faq

Stay up to date with Government advice on how to help others safely here.

We’d love to see what you create so don’t forget to take a photo of your postcard and send to us at pr@nfwi.org.uk.