Millom charity says 'real work' starts after official status

Willow of Millom was made a fully registered CIC (Community Interest Company) last week.

The man behind the endeavour is Simon Donnelly, who is looking to create a cafe to offer people with disabilities a place to learn and work.

After the news was confirmed, he said: "Now the real work starts - let's make a real difference and build a stronger community.

"We will be opening pop-up cafes in Millom to train our working family and perfect our service skills before looking to open up in a permanent home."

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Simon originally came up with the idea after realising that work options for children like his daughter Willow - who has Down Syndrome - are 'very limited' both nationwide and in the local area.

The cafe, once it comes to fruition, will aspire to provide those work options or to point people in the right direction when they are lost.

Other than offering support to the local disabled community, Simon and the charity will also be putting a percentage of all profits back into the area through donations and a community fund that local groups and charities can apply to for financial help.

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For the time being, a series of pop-up cafes will help the team find their footing as they branch out into a new industry.

Simon explained: "We want to get the brand out into the community and show what we plan to do when we move into a larger-scale premise, start to build our working family and learn how we can bring energy and life to the cafe.

"It will be a great opportunity for people to come along and be part of our journey as we start to create something special."

There will be free milkshakes and cake giveaways to entice people to visit once the pop-up cafes make their debut, with the new official status proving that Simon is heading in the right direction.