A CAFÉ in Tang Hall is helping the community by offering groceries, hot meals, and baked goods to those in need.

YourCafe, a volunteer led café held every Wednesday from 11am to 12pm in Tang Community Centre, is saving a tonne of food from landfill each week and helping support up to 400 people in eating a healthy and balanced diet.

Stephen Collins, centre manager at Tang Hall Community Centre, said: “As a centre, YourCafe is part of why I took this role. Tang Hall is a fantastic community and I’m here to promote the area.”

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YourCafe says that the people of Tang Hall face a big issue with health inequality - on average, people in Tang Hall die 10 years younger than residents in Bootham. There are also above average levels of social isolation.

YourCafe hopes to work as a ‘perfect mechanism’ to solve such problems – working in collaboration with different organisations in the hope of providing a space for people to get together, enjoy nutritious food – both cooked and to take home - while avoiding food wastage.

It also seeks to bring the community together, helping a number of refugees and providing them with regular volunteering work – something that allows them to improve their English, make connections, and start to feel a part of the community they live in.

One of those refugees, Ali (who is from Afghanistan), speaks seven languages, and is able to help people connect to the services they might not otherwise be able to access. This is something that founders say has reduced social tensions in the area between some locals and refugees who are new to the area.

York Press: YourCafe volunteers at Tang Hall Community CentreYourCafe volunteers at Tang Hall Community Centre (Image: YourCafe)

Speaking to one of the group leaders, Lisa Maunder-Wood, she said: “Originally, the group started as a small community fridge where people would be served a three-course meal. During Covid, people weren’t able to eat together so we would send out bags of food.”

From there, it evolved into the café that it is today – servicing an average of 80 families and up to 400 people each week. In addition to those who attend the café itself, there is further donations with all uneaten food going to help three primary schools and the homeless shelter.

Lisa originally became involved with YourCafe for around nine or ten years, taking over from the founders when they wanted to retire 3 years ago. Alongside codirectors, Felicity Hardy and Amy Johnson, they now lead a team of 40 volunteers every Wednesday and up to 200 in total.

Most of the volunteers have been here since the start but many others are on a drop in drop out basis, just popping down when they can.

According to Lisa: “Part of the beauty of YourCafe is that we have no requirements, we welcome everyone. It’s not designed for any one community, it’s for everyone.”