On the 12th of November 2021, we were very kindly donated an old, run down portacabin by local company Caldicot Group.
It has always been our goal to have a cafe area where parents could relax while their children participated in class but due to the size of our venue, this was unobtainable for us….. until now!
With this new addition we could convert this dilapidated building and turn it into a warm, comfortable and unique space where people could enjoy a great cup of coffee and a fresh cake or two.
However, funds were extremely low following the Covid-19 pandemic so we took to Crowdfunder in the hope to raise some of the funds required to start this project.
With the help of our members, our family and friends and through the support of local businesses, we raised over £6,000.00 in just 4 weeks!
Sport Wales contributed £4000.00 as part of the Place for Sport partnership with Crowdfunder taking our total raised to £10,577.00.
We called on the expertise of our amazing contractor Aquila Concepts who came up with a plan and inspiring visuals but we soon realised it would cost far more than originally anticipated to turn the old portacabin into the vision we had for The Coffee Beam.
In order to obtain the remainder of the funds needed for this project, we applied for a Welsh Government Grant under their Community Facilities Programme and were successful in our bid and granted £78,683.00.
We could now realise our dreams and, after waiting an exceptionally long time for planning to be granted, works finally began on the 12th of July 2023.
We have so many plans to bring into fruition with our new addition….. Creating new employment opportunities, offering a live stream from the main facility so parents can watch class, providing workplace experience to people with disabilities, creating a Pay it Forward Scheme so those less fortunate can have a hot meal or drink when they are down on their luck, catering for our Fit & Fed programme where we provide a hot meal to children during the school holidays….. to name a few.
We are so excited for the future and hope that you will join us for a coffee at our lovely coffee lounge very soon!