Oswestry Town Council has joined the Chatty Cafe Scheme, which aims to reduce loneliness and get people chatting. This forms part of the Council’s plan to tackle social isolation, which was the subject of the Council’s Annual Town Meeting in February 2023.
The Chatty Café is a great way of encouraging people to talk to others. The scheme is the brainchild of Alexandra Hoskyn, who founded it after a miserable day at a supermarket café with her infant son, where she noticed that no one was talking to each other. She found that by simply putting ‘Chatter & Natter’ signs on tables in cafes it created a space for people to talk.
Look out for the ‘Chatter & Natter table’ at Hatters Café, Powis Hall Indoor Market on Wednesdays.
Who can join in?
Anyone… if you’re on your own, in a couple, with a friend, if you’re a carer why not sit there with who you care for, mums and babies, dads and babies, grandparents and babies, young people, older people and anyone in between! It’s a great way to meet new people in your community.
What do I do?
When you are deciding where to sit, look for the Chatter & Natter table and sit there! Stay for five minutes while you have your drink or longer. It’s not about making life-long friends, just having good old fashioned human interaction!
The Chatty Café Scheme has rapidly expanded their services starting from just a few ‘Chatter & Natter’ tables in 2019 to a network of nearly 600 venues by 2023, in addition to a telephone friendship service, and virtual chatty café sessions via Zoom.
If you like meeting new people and could spare one or two hours a week to chat to those that use the table at Powis Hall Market’s ‘Chatter & Natter’ table, Oswestry Town Council would like to hear from you. Please contact enquiries@oswestry-tc.gov.uk and they will put you in touch with the chatty café team.
For more information, please visit their website: https://thechattycafescheme.co.uk/
