Millom health and wellbeing cafe making a difference to the local community

The Retreat Health and Wellbeing Café was created and launched by Millom Integrated Care Community (ICC) for the people of Millom following visitor feedback at this year’s ‘The Choice is Yours’ health and wellbeing festival. People attending the festival fed back that they had no safe place to go and meet other people with similar long-term conditions such as dementia.  

The café has a different theme each week and once a month Richard Metcalf, Development Officer for Active Cumbria, attends to play games such as skittles, indoor archery and Velcro darts.

More than 160 people have attended the Café in Millom since it opened its doors on Wednesday 4 August 2021. The café is held at Devonshire Buildings every Wednesday. 

Feedback from people attending the café has included:

• Barbara, who is blind, and Kathleen, said: “It’s informal, friendly and has a great atmosphere. We would love to see it carry on otherwise there would be more social isolation in our community.”
• Mary goes to the cafe with her husband Terry, who has dementia, said: “I really look forward to Wednesdays. It has a nice programme of events. For me, it’s a nice relaxing hour to chat to others. It fills the gap now we have no AGE UK in Millom. It is essential people have somewhere to socialise.”
• Mark, who has suffered from social isolation immensely during COVID, said: “I have found it to provide a huge boost of confidence for me. I am learning new things. I have enjoyed taking part as usually I never do.”
• Josephine, who is wheelchair-bound, said: “I feel that this group is enabling me to have a purpose in life. I can get out and my confidence is growing again. I have met some lovely people and made new friends. I have also tried new things to do and found things I didn’t think I could manage. This group is a real-life line for me. I am wheelchair-bound and it is close enough to my home to be able to get here on my own and this is a big thing for me as it gives me back my independence.”

Richard Metcalf, Development Officer for Active Cumbria, said: “At Active Cumbria our role is to get more people active, irrespective of age, ability or long-term health conditions. It has been great to pop down to Millom every month. At the first session, I could see people were a little apprehensive when we mentioned physical activity. There’s certainly no pressure for anyone to join in, but they all do. They particularly loved the archery last time. Our mantra for the group is ten minutes is better than no minutes. It’s so rewarding to see so many happy smiling faces and know the café and activities is making so much difference to people's everyday lives.”

Jenny Riley, Millom ICC Development Lead who created and runs the café, said: “This is a much-needed community group in Millom where people feel very isolated and alone, especially coming out of COVID. We ensure there is something different each week for the group to do. One week we can have a 1960’s music quiz and next week we are creating Halloween masks. I particularly like the Get Millom Moving weeks with the indoor exercise games as we get to see people up and about and really enjoying themselves. At the last activity session, I was playing skittles with an elderly gentleman with dementia who cannot speak but he can certainly laugh. He didn’t want the session to end.”

Angela Dixon, Manager of Devonshire Buildings, who came out of her office at the last activity session ‘Get Millom Moving’ as she heard all the laughter, said: “We need to bottle this and sell it. This is what it is all about.”