Background: Social interventions to support people with severe mental illness are important to improving the quality of life. The perspectives of users are essential in this process. This article explores users' experiences, investments and concerns of a befriending programme.
Material: Focus group and individual qualitative interviews with service users.
Discussion: Overall, the experiences with the programme were positive, and the social interaction was highly valued. However, that the relationships were arranged and facilitated by mental health workers remained an unresolved concern even after several years.
Conclusion: People with severe mental illness benefit from relationships despite the need of professional assistant.
Keywords: Severe mental illness; befriending; community mental health; qualitative research; social inclusion; users’ perspective.