A community café with a difference is celebrating its first anniversary this month – dispelling the doubts of locals who feared that it might not last.
The Camouflage Café in Thamesmead served its first customers in April last year, making use of an old social club that had been closed for 17 years.
After many false dawns for the Moorings Sociable Club, off Bentham Road, neighbours worried that the Camouflage Café would not succeed. But now it’s here to stay, according to Kemi Madumere, one of the café’s founders.
“I think people were disillusioned,” she said. “They had been told two or three companies would come, it didn’t work and they left.
“So they thought well, it’s another company, they’ll go in six months. We’re now coming past that difficult period, people are starting to trust that we’re staying.”
The café is run by the Brighter Futures Foundation, which aims to give adults with learning difficulties the experience to make them more confident in their lives. Two interns from a Brighter Futures programme have already gone from behind the counter at the Camouflage Café to working elsewhere.
“We’ve had eight interns come through the programme. So far, so good. They’re due to graduate in June,” Madumere said.
Two interns usually work each day, along with two support staff, and they also help put on events to bring neighbours into the café.
“We’ve got things like over-55s’ salsa classes and intergenerational baby clubs, so grandparents will come along,” she said.
Brighter Future has had a lot of requests from people who would like to do an internship in the cafe – so Madumere is hoping to opening more branches. She would also like to allow older people to do an internship – currently they are only open to people aged up to 24.
“We’re now opening a college which helps with the theoretical base,” she said, ”so they can get things like catering qualifications.”
Yet it is difficult to find companies that really want to open their doors to people with learning difficulties.
“A lot of them want to be inclusive, want to be involved but when you ask them, they back off,” Madumere said.
“I think our message is just for companies to come forward and give them a shot. We’re there to support them, so they won’t be left on their own. We will be there in the background.”
The companies can benefit too, Madumere said.
“You will give them a chance, you will give them some confidence and it also might change your viewpoint,” she said. “You might have a different perception of what you think they’re like, but then you see them and say, ‘oh, they’re a lot more capable than I thought.”
Camouflage Café is open 9am-4pm on weekdays at 3 Arnott Close SE28 8BG.
Anna Schriewersmann is a student journalist from the University of West London.
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