A café that serves up wellbeing support along with cups of coffee will be able to extend community connections offered to lonely and vulnerable people in Falmouth after to receiving a four figure sum from Aberdeen’s Charitable Foundation.

Since its launch in April, Carrick Mind’s community café held at the Palacio Lounge on The Moor, has become a busy drop-in point for all kinds of people, particularly the socially isolated and those with mental health issues. It is held on the first and third week of the month between 10.30am and 12.30pm.

The community café was launched to help address the what the growing scale of loneliness is having on society and does not require referrals – people are encouraged to pop in, chat to session staff who offer peer support and can provide signposting to services, if necessary.

The donation from Aberdeen Charitable Foundation will support valuable volunteer training to enable the best peer support, guidance and information to be provided. Project co-ordinator Jo Boulton said: "The support of Aberdeen Charitable Foundation is amazing as it will allow us to keep the service running, making improvements, develop it further and allow our volunteers to work on increasing self-confidence and self-esteem among café users.

“Life changing events like moving to a new town, retiring, suffering a bereavement, or developing a mental illness can lead to acute loneliness and once that becomes chronic it can be difficult to treat. Our community café is a place where people who are feeling isolated, lonely, stigmatised by illness, loss or needing advice and support can come together.

"If someone has something worrying them, they can talk it through, get advice and begin the journey of re-engagement with family, friends and the local community.”