West Suffolk councillor praises charity’s work to tackle rural isolation

03 Feb 2023

A charity’s efforts to confront isolation and tackle loneliness in rural communities has been praised by a West Suffolk councillor.

Cllr Sarah Pugh, who represents Whepstead and Wickhambrook welcomed Rural Coffee Caravan to Stansfield for the first of what is hoped will become regular visits to the village. The pop-up mobile community café helps bring people together, offering them the chance to take part in activities such as arts workshops and fun fitness activities which are free to participants, and to meet and make new friends. It also includes an information centre helping people better access other initiatives and organisations in the local area that they can benefit from including winter support.

Cllr Pugh said: “It is 20 years this year since the Rural Coffee Caravan was set up and it was an honour to welcome them to Stansfield for the first visit of 2023. Alleviating feelings of loneliness is important to people’s mental health, helping lift low mood, and that in turn can also have a hugely positive impact on their physical health as well. It was also amazing to see the work they are doing to help improve people’s quality of life such as through making people aware and helping them access devices to improve hearing and mobility.  I know many of the Stansfield residents are looking forward to the Coffee Caravan’s return on 16 February and I will be making sure the other villages in my area are engaging with the important work of this wonderful charity.”

Rural Coffee Caravan has been helping map and coordinate warm space activities across the area. This ongoing work has recently received £5,000 with West Suffolk Council’s winter support fund set up using part of the Council’s allocation from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. In total, the West Suffolk Council winter support fund has received £70,343 from the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.

Alongside mapping warm spaces, as part of its work helping people with the cost-of-living, Rural Coffee Caravan also runs an appeal which has raised money to provide more than 1,000 slow cookers to households in need across Suffolk, alongside other items such as wearable blankets and hot water bottles.

Diana Patrick from Rural Coffee Caravan led January’s visit to Stansfield. She said: “It was lovely to see so many people and a nice opportunity for them to come out for a coffee and a chat. We were also able to help fix someone’s walking stick while we were there which made a huge difference to them. The visits offer a great opportunity for people to find out about other support, information and advice. We had one lady recently at one of our other villages who was struggling with her bills. We discussed her situation with her, made her aware of what she is entitled to and she is now nearly £400 a month better off which is a huge difference.”

A session on benefits and financial support is planned for Rural Coffee Caravan’s next visit to Stansfield on 16 February.

Chair of Stansfield Parish Council, Cllr Wendy Johnson Houghton, said: “We were delighted to welcome Rural Coffee Caravan to Stansfield. It was greatly appreciated and enjoyed by many of our residents and we are very much looking forward to its return on 16 February.”

The charity visits a number of West Suffolk villages including:

• Cavendish at St Mary’s Church, usually on the second Monday of the month from 10.30am to 12.30pm
• Fornham All Saints either at Thingoe Lodge or the Village Hall, usually on the first Wednesday of the month from 10am to 12pm
• Freckenham at East View, usually on the first Tuesday of the month from 2pm to 4pm
• Gazeley at the Village Hall, usually on the fourth Wednesday of the month from 10am to 12pm
• Lidgate at the Village Hall, usually on the second Friday of the month from 10am to 12pm
• Stansfield at the Village Hall, usually on the third Thursday of the month from 10am to 12pm
• Worlington at the Village Hall, usually on the last Friday of the month from 10am to 12pm

Rural Coffee Caravan also runs several other initiatives:

MeetUpMondays™ is a network of pubs and cafes across the county hosting free weekly coffee mornings. These offer consistent, regular opportunities for people who are on their own to build confidence and grow their social connections in an everyday setting without feeling labelled as lonely. Established in Suffolk, the network has also welcomed venues nationwide.

c-a-f-e (coffee and friends events) network connects Suffolk community groups and social clubs with local organisations which can offer free training and funding to help strengthen their groups and develop their community spaces, making them more sustainable.

More Than A Shop acknowledges and celebrates the vital role local shops play in alleviating loneliness. Rural Coffee Caravan supports this growing network of 50plus rural stores (which are often a lifeline for the more vulnerable and isolated) as places of welcome and friendship for their communities.
For more information see https://ruralcoffeecaravan.org.uk/

The UK Shared Prosperity Fund is a central pillar of the UK government’s Levelling Up agenda and provides £2.6 billion of funding for local investment by March 2025. The Fund aims to improve pride in place and increase life chances across the UK investing in communities and place, supporting local business, and people and skills. For more information, visit https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-shared-prosperity-fund-prospectus

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