Friends After 40 Across the South West

The South West has more women in their 50s than in their 40s, so you may need to look a little harder for your peers. Here is where to start.

Making friends after 40 in the South West: four friends at a candlelit pavement table with bread, salad and a jug of water, sharing a laugh

358K+

South West women in their 40s, mid-2025 (ONS)

37K+

Fewer women in their 40s than in their 50s here (ONS)

11.9%

Residents aged 40–49 (ONS, mid-2025)

Being 40-Something in the South West

Mid-2025 ONS estimates show more than 358,000 South West women in their 40s, and over 37,000 more in their 50s. That can make your own age group feel a little thin on the ground, especially away from Exeter, Plymouth or Swindon. If you hope to make friends after 40 in the South West, don’t wait for a group made of exact peers. Mixed-age clubs, from sea swimming to community gardening, often give you the friends you did not know you were missing, and the women your own age will find you there too. And if you are the youngest in the room at first, enjoy it: that rarely lasts. The local pages below cover eighteen places, including Exeter, Torquay, Gloucester and Weston-super-Mare.

Two Articles to Bookmark

How Long Does It Take to Become Best Friends? The Genuine Numbers Behind a Difficult Truth

How long does it take to become best friends? Research says hundreds of hours, but there’s a real timeline behind the numbers.

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Feeling Lonely Even With Friends? Here’s the Honest Reason Why

Feeling lonely even with friends is more common than you'd think. Here's why it happens, and what actually helps you feel less alone.

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From the Gofrendly Editors

Claudia Gard and Ulrika Lilja put this South West page together with one question in mind: where do you find people your own age when they are thinner on the ground?