Great Places has helped an inclusive community café in Darwen secure a £9,998.31 grant from the Community Catalyst Capacity Building Grants fund to support the development of its services in the town.
Number One Café, based on Croft Street, supports people experiencing homelessness, neurodivergent people, and those seeking employment opportunities in the community.
The funding will contribute towards the salary of the café’s Assistant Manager, enabling founder and CEO Joanne Bates to carry out outreach work, build relationships with stakeholders, and promote the centre’s services more widely.
Great Places Funding Partnership Lead Daniel Mountford supported Number One Café in accessing the funding and helped the organisation prepare a strategic plan for its future development.
Joanne said: “We can’t thank Daniel, Great Places, and the Community Catalyst fund enough for helping us secure this grant award.
“Since we opened in February 2025, we have welcomed more than 30,000 visitors through the door and helped signpost people to services they had previously struggled to access.
“We are so much more than a café. It is just one of the services we offer to help people address the issues they feel they need support with.
“The new knowledge and funding will help us realise the centre’s potential. We are installing a training kitchen, which will enable us to employ people to provide hot drinks and sandwiches to the public.
“We have big plans for the future, and we are delighted to have received this funding.”
Daniel added: “Number One Café does fantastic work and supports so many people, so it has been a real pleasure to help them move forward.
“The café has an expert leadership team and dedicated staff who make a real difference to people’s lives. They have an exciting future ahead.”
Caption: Funding Partnership Lead Daniel Mountford (back left) and CEO Joanne Bates (front left) with members of the centre staff
