Charity open social cafe in heart of Downpatrick

Charity open social cafe in heart of Downpatrick

2 March 2022

DOWNPATRICK has its very first social cafe and an open invitation is being extended to people to in.

Located at the home of Life Change Changes Lives in Market Street, the welcoming cafe has been designed as a safe space for people to access mental health services in a relaxed atmosphere.

Opened just two weeks ago, the new cafe places emphasis on people coming in to socialise and avoiding the internet for a while.

The local charity — established by Manus and Ailish Teague and which plays a vital role helping people with mental health and addiction issues — continues to go from strength to strength, with the new cafe creating two jobs.

Manus and Ailish say the new cafe’s tag line is ‘connecting over coffee’ and is very much a part of the social enterprise they run which helps those experiencing social isolation issues. It also works  to address suicide prevention through one-to-one counselling and offers peer mentoring and creative therapy.

Despite lockdown restrictions during the coronavirus pandemic, the charity continued to function and also organised a number of projects including a photographic competition which proved hugely successful.

There were also socially distanced walks, with the success of the organisation now complemented by a second hand clothing department which runs alongside the Pop-Up-Art initiative which involves refurbishing old furniture which is then sold, with all the money pumped back into the charity.

There is an emphasis on keeping cafe costs affordable for everyone with key support provided by a generous anonymous donation and the Housing Executive.

Fitted out by participants and decorated by donated furniture from the local community and businesses the new cafe’s only main purchase was a Barista coffee machine.

“We are very grateful for all the support we have received to help launch the new social cafe and it is a very welcome addiction to the service that we offer,” explained Ailish. “We are well placed in Market Street which has been home now for five years and we hope people will feel free to visit our new cafe. 

“A lot of hard work went into delivering it and we are very happy with the finished product which we hope many people will use. All the money that we me make after paying our staff will be invested back into the project.”

Ailish explained that opening the social cafe is something that the local organisation has been thinking about doing for a while.

“The concept is very simple. You can pop in for a coffee or tea with a treat or a toastie to take time out and relax and, if you want, you can have a chat with someone from Life Change, Changes Lives, hence our tagline of ‘connecting over coffee’.

“We saw similar cafes operating in other social enterprises and perhaps someone who pops in for a coffee may buy something they see in the shop or vice versa. 

“The cafe has been going well since it opened although the weather has not been kind over the past while. In addition, some people are still being carefully and exiting Covid slowly. Coronavirus is still out there, but financially we are keeping our heads above water.”

Ailish said the social cafe can also be used by local students who may wish to pop in at lunchtime or by those out shopping who want to take the weight off their feet and have a cuppa and a chat and, at the same time, support a worthy and important cause.

“We are open to anyone. The cafe is not just for the project’s participants and we would love people to pop in and see us. No one is under any 

obligation to speak to anyone, just sit down with a cuppa and relax.”

Open from Tuesday to Friday between 9.30am and 3pm and 9.30am to 4pm on Saturday, Ailish said she is delighted to see people coming into the cafe which offers a relaxed atmosphere, explaining that if someone would like to have a chat about any mental issue they may have then they are more than welcome to do so.

Launched in 2014 and previously based at the Grove shopping centre, Life Change Changes Lives has been in Market Street for five years with new external signage erected recently.

The move to Market Street resulted in an increase in participants and the charity’s more visible presence has made many more people aware of it and what it does, with people encouraged to pop in and have a chat if they are experiencing mental health or addiction issues as “no one should feel ashamed to seek help”.

Much has been said about the coronavirus legacy in terms of its impact on people’s health with Life Change Changes Lives expecting to be busy as people begin to come to terms with the fallout from the pandemic in terms of mental health and addictions issues.

“Coronavirus did not do anyone any favours in terms of over indulgence and alcohol consumption. The staff who run the Ward 15 addictions unit at the Downshire Hospital will tell you that. Indeed, we are getting more referrals from their community addictions teams.

“We are now an independent charity trying to survive by independent means and the new social cafe is geared towards helping us to do that. The new enterprise is about trying our best to become  more independent and not rely on external funding.”

With a tightening grip on mental health funding, the local charity recognises the need to become more self sustaining, explaining that with that, comes a sense of achievement and fulfilment.

“We have a very close relationship with the Housing Executive which we are grateful for and it has funded us over the past year. Indeed, the 

organisation’s chairman visited us and was very impressed with what we do here,” said Ailish.

“We are keen to maintain the relationship we have with the Housing Executive and hope to go from strength to strength working with its support. Our work will help people maintain their tenancies and help their mental health which is a win win situation all round.”

As lockdown restrictions continue to ease, the local charity looks back over the past two years when it worked hard to maintain services and connect with people with great pride.

Ailish added: “Looking back, it was a massive achievement. We have a new air filtration system fitted in our building and it is great to have everyone back. The social cafe is something very new for us and we have no doubt that it will be a success and play a key role in the work that we do.”