- Women only
- Friendship, not dating
- Free to join
- Local guide
- October 21, 2026
Make Friends After 40 in Northumberland Without the School Run
Roughly one Northumberland woman in nine is in her forties, so a club night is a good way to find the ones who share your free evenings.
333,000+
residents of the Northumberland County Council area, mid-2025 (ONS)
11%
Northumberland residents in the 40–49 bracket; across the North East the figure is 12% (ONS, 2025 estimates)
19,400+
women in Northumberland aged 40–49 (ONS, 2025 mid-year)
Northumberland, with evenings to yourself
In Northumberland, being childfree in your 40s means evenings and weekends can go straight into groups that meet on a schedule. Jog on the Tyne runs Couch to 5K and social runs from Wentworth Leisure Centre in Hexham, the Hexham Book Group meets monthly in the Forum Cinema café, and Woodhorn Museum in Ashington takes volunteers. Gofrendly is how you can spot nearby women who also have evenings to spare.
Northumberland, asked by women without children
Is there a running group in Northumberland for beginners in their 40s?
Jog on the Tyne, based at Wentworth Leisure Centre in Hexham, offers Couch to 5K over ten weeks alongside social, steady and improver groups. Its Northumberland timetable includes 6.30pm sessions on Mondays and Wednesdays and Sunday mornings on Tyne Green, and it welcomes beginners through to seasoned runners.
Where do Northumberland readers meet for a book group?
The Hexham Book Group meets once a month in the café at the Forum Cinema on Market Place, Hexham; it costs nothing to join and is open to all. Northumberland Libraries also connect readers with reading groups through Reading for Wellbeing, a project run with Public Health.
Can you volunteer at a museum in Northumberland?
Woodhorn Museum in Ashington recruits volunteers aged 18 and over. One Northumberland role supports a creative writing group monthly, on the first Friday, from 1.45pm to 3.45pm, with training provided and no writing experience needed. The museum suggests travelling there by car.
How can childfree women in Northumberland make new friends close to home?
Gofrendly, the women-only friendship app, brings up Northumberland women nearby, and you are free to write first. Across such a large county, matching with a neighbour from the next village or street makes a regular run, film or walk far easier to keep going.
Childfree friendships across Northumberland
Without children, the ready-made networks of school gates and junior sport never form around you, and in a county as spread out as Northumberland that gap can be wide. The upside is flexibility. You can say yes to a Wednesday training run, a monthly book discussion or a daytime volunteering shift, and you can travel to the one that suits you rather than the one nearest a primary school. Nobody needs a babysitter to make your plans work.
Northumberland has fewer people in their forties than the wider North East: about 11% of the county, against 12% regionally. When friends your age are busy with family, a free weekend can feel lonely surprisingly fast. To make friends after 40 here, look for groups where the conversation starts with the activity, not with whose child is in which class, and keep going until the organisers greet you by name. Starting points:
1
Jog on the Tyne, a Hexham running group with sessions most days from Wentworth Leisure Centre, including Couch to 5K over ten weeks.
2
Tyne Green parkrun, a free timed 5k on Saturday mornings at Tyne Green in Hexham.
3
Hexham Book Group, which meets monthly in the café at the Forum Cinema on Market Place and is open to all.
4
Woodhorn Museum in Ashington, which recruits volunteers aged 18 and over, including a role supporting its monthly creative writing group.
5
Coquet Shorebase Trust in Amble, offering canoeing, kayaking and powerboating for all ages and abilities.
LOCAL TIP
Whichever suits your week, keep the date.
How to
Childfree weeknights in Northumberland, put to use
1
Ring Jog on the Tyne about its next Couch to 5K, then add a Monday or Wednesday evening run.
2
Read the month’s choice for the Hexham Book Group at the Forum Cinema café and stay for a drink afterwards.
3
Look up childfree Northumberland women via Gofrendly and pick a Tyne Green parkrun to do side by side.
4
Offer a monthly afternoon to Woodhorn Museum’s creative writing group; no writing experience is needed.
Two reads with no school run in them
Our Northumberland page for childfree women
Gofrendly founders Claudia Gård and Ulrika Lilja wrote the Northumberland page, and our editorial team sharpened it. It speaks to childfree women between 40 and 49, and points to running groups, a book group and volunteering that fill free evenings.
Friendship looks different at every stage
More guides for women in this area – each with its own local advice.
Friendship looks different at every stage
More guides for women in this area – each with its own local advice.
Find women near you
See who’s nearby and say hi — it’s free to start.