October 21, 2026

Make Friends After 40 in Islington when you live alone

In over 36% of Islington homes a single adult lives alone, and the borough’s libraries run evening reading groups in most weeks of the month.

Islington night: a laughing pair of friends beneath a lamp

26,500+

Islington residents aged 40 to 49 in mid-2025 (ONS estimate)

12%

Islington’s proportion of people between 40 and 49, under the London level of 14% (ONS mid-2025)

36%

Islington households made up of a single adult; the London average is 29% (2021 Census, ONS)

Islington has an evening group for every week

Single and living alone in your 40s in Islington, you could fill most weekday evenings with a library group if you wanted to. Central Library in Highbury, Archway, Finsbury, Mildmay and West Library all host monthly reading groups from about 6pm, and Mildmay also has a poetry group. Gofrendly helps single Islington women meet others nearby who want company after work.

Single in Islington after 40: questions

Islington friends laughing as they walk bikes down a leafy path

Which Islington libraries have evening reading groups?

Central Library meets on the third Monday from 6pm, Archway on the second Wednesday, Finsbury usually on the first Monday, Mildmay on the third Thursday and West Library on the last Thursday. With that spread, Islington readers can choose the one that suits their week.

Is there a poetry group in Islington?

Mildmay Library hosts poetry evenings on the first Thursday of every month from 6.30pm to 7.30pm, and its reading group meets on the third Thursday. West Library also runs a crime and thriller group, so Islington readers with a favourite genre can find people who share it.

Where can single 40-something women go on a weeknight in Islington?

Library reading groups are the easiest start, but the Estorick Collection in Canonbury has a café open from Wednesday to Sunday, and Union Chapel hosts concerts in a working church. Each offers Islington residents a place to go alone and come away having talked to someone.

How do you meet friends in Islington when you live solo?

Gofrendly, a women-only friendship app, helps single women in Islington find neighbours and write to them to suggest a plan. Meeting at a library reading group or for coffee at the Estorick Collection keeps the first time easy for both of you.

Single in Islington in your forties: making friends

Islington runs from Clerkenwell, Angel and King’s Cross up through Highbury and Holloway to Archway and Tufnell Park. One-person households are more than 36% of the Islington total, well above the London figure, and people aged 40 to 49 are only about one Islington resident in eight. Being single here is ordinary, but it does mean evenings are entirely yours to plan. To make friends after 40 in Islington, give a few of those evenings a fixed shape and stick with it.

Weekends alone can turn lonely, even in a crowded borough. A monthly book group, a poetry evening, a gallery visit or a concert gives you a reason to head out and familiar faces when you arrive. Islington’s libraries run at least nine adult reading groups, most in the evening, and the borough has an Italian art gallery and a working chapel that doubles as a music venue. Places to start:

Central Library in Highbury, whose reading group meets on the third Monday.

Mildmay Library, where poets meet on the first Thursday evening.

West Library in Barnsbury, with a crime and thriller group.

The Estorick Collection in Canonbury Square, with a café.

Union Chapel near Upper Street, a working church and live music venue.

LOCAL TIP

Choose one library group and put the next three dates in your diary.

How to

Islington: meeting people on weeknights

Join the reading group at your nearest Islington library and go three months running.

Bring a favourite poem to the Mildmay group, or simply listen.

Message single Islington women on Gofrendly and visit the Estorick together.

Book a concert at Union Chapel and arrive early to talk.

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Islington: written for women living alone

Gofrendly founders Claudia Gård and Ulrika Lilja wrote about Islington with our editorial team, thinking of solo women in their forties who want company on weeknights.