October 21, 2026

Make Friends After 40 in Croydon after a separation

Nearly one in ten Croydon households is a lone mum or dad with dependent children, so starting again in your 40s here is far from unusual.

Croydon friends cracking up on a drive somewhere

58,800+

Croydon residents in their forties in the mid-2025 ONS figures

14%

share of Croydon’s people aged 40 to 49, on a par with London (ONS mid-year estimates 2025)

10%

Croydon households headed by one parent with dependent children, compared with 8% for London overall (ONS, Census 2021)

Croydon has room for a fresh start

After a separation in your 40s, Croydon has plenty of places to build a circle that is entirely your own. Shirley Singers rehearse every Monday evening without auditions, CALAT runs adult courses in Thornton Heath and central Croydon, and the Museum of Croydon hosts evening talks as well as free daytime opening. Gofrendly gives Croydon women who are starting over a way to reach others nearby at a similar point.

Croydon, after 40 and starting over

Croydon evening scene: two friends laughing by a street lamp

Is there a community choir in Croydon with no audition?

Shirley Singers Community Choir rehearses on Monday evenings, finishing at 9.45pm, at Shirley Parish Hall on Wickham Road. No audition or previous experience is needed, and the choir sings carols at Christmas, so Croydon newcomers have something to work towards together.

What adult courses can you take in Croydon?

CALAT, Croydon Adult Learning and Training, is the council-run adult education service, teaching in Thornton Heath and central Croydon. It offers creative arts, languages, digital skills, business and bookkeeping, so Croydon adults can choose something new and see the same classmates each week.

How can women in their 40s rebuild a social life in Croydon?

Start with one fixed weekly activity, such as a choir, a course or a regular swim, and add a second once the first feels familiar. In Croydon that could be Shirley Singers on Mondays and a lane swim at Thornton Heath, both easy to keep up alongside work.

How do you meet new women friends in Croydon after a divorce?

Gofrendly, a women-only friendship app, helps women in Croydon find neighbours and get in touch with someone who is also starting over. An evening talk at the Museum of Croydon or a performance at Stanley Arts makes an easy first outing together.

Starting again in Croydon

Croydon is London’s most populous borough, with a busy town centre around East Croydon and quieter districts such as Shirley, Purley, Coulsdon and Thornton Heath. Roughly 58,800 Croydon people are in their forties, about the same share as across London, and almost 10% of households are a single parent with school-age children, above the London figure. Many shared friendships go with a marriage, so when you make friends after 40 in Croydon, aim for some that belong only to you and that fit your own week rather than a former shared one.

The first months after a break-up can be lonely in ways that surprise you, especially on weekends without the children. Weekly commitments rebuild a routine: a choir on the same night, a term-long course, a swim in the same lane. Croydon offers all of these, along with an arts venue in South Norwood and a free museum. Places to start:

Shirley Singers, a community choir rehearsing on Monday evenings.

CALAT, Croydon’s adult learning service, for creative arts and languages.

Museum of Croydon in the Clocktower, free and with occasional evening talks.

Thornton Heath Leisure Centre, for lengths before or after work.

Stanley Arts in South Norwood, a theatre and arts venue.

LOCAL TIP

Put the Monday choir in your calendar for the weeks you are on your own.

How to

Making friends again in Croydon: four steps

Join Shirley Singers on a Monday; no audition or experience is needed.

Take a CALAT creative arts or language course for a full term.

Message Croydon women who are also starting over on Gofrendly.

Book an evening talk at the Museum of Croydon and stay to talk afterwards.

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Croydon: a page for new beginnings

Women in their 40s rebuilding a social life after a separation are the readers Gofrendly founders Claudia Gård and Ulrika Lilja and our editors had in mind for this Croydon page.