Rural Coffee Caravan
718. The Revd Canon Sally Fogden MBE
The Rev Canon Sally Fogden set up ‘The Rural Coffee Caravan’, to tackle the loneliness and isolation she saw too often in rural communities.
This free mobile community café and information centre visits villages across Suffolk, offering a place for people of all ages to socialise and access a range of otherwise hard to reach services such as blood pressure checks and financial advice. The services, advice, tea and cake are all free. Last year alone, the caravan made over 180 visits, welcoming over 5,800 local residents, with a focus on villages that lack community space.
In a personal letter to Sally, Prime Minister Theresa May said:
“Thanks to your vision and dedication, ‘The Rural Coffee Caravan’ is helping rural communities across Suffolk, fostering community spirit and providing valuable services and advice to thousands of local residents.”
Sally said:
“I am very honoured to be given this award, very surprised and truly delighted that a small charity like ours has been honoured in this way. I may have had the idea but so many others caught the vision and help to make it happen, so it is an award for all our volunteers who give so generously of their time.”
