Connecting Bromley residents together at Orpington Wellbeing Cafe

The Café opens every fortnight at the Orpington Methodist Church and offers a warm welcome to all, refreshments, and a talk from local health services

The Orpington Wellbeing Café is an excellent example of Bromley services identifying a need and working together to put something in place.  So far health talks have covered information on Bromley Healthcare’s Bladder and Bowel service, Community Matrons, Podiatry, Rapid Response, and the respiratory team.

Kassum, Social Prescriber in Bromley explained, “People who might be living alone and don’t have much of a social network, can come along to meet others, have a chat and just improve their social wellbeing”.

Feedback from attendees has been really positive.  They have appreciated having somewhere safe to come, meet new people and hear more about the range of health services available to them.

“I think it’s got real potential as people like us, who have taken early retirement due to health issues and family issues – we are a bit lost. We’ve come from employment where were dealing with lots of people every day, to dealing with nobody – apart from the dog. It’s quite difficult, so we recognise that in ourselves and we’re looking for something else so this might well be something that could help us.” – Karen, Orpington Resident

“I phoned up the doctor as I was a bit worried about an elderly relative, and he said to bring him to the Café. The Matrons were here that day and I asked them for their help.  It’s reassuring to know there is something there that can help you if you need it – even if it’s just reassurance”.   Bridget, Orpington Resident

More information about the Orpington Health and Wellbeing Café is available on the Bromley Healthcare website.

Bromley’s tackling loneliness strategy 2022 to 2026 focuses on preventing people from feeling lonely all or most of the time.  Just as we understand the importance of looking after our physical and mental health, we must also look after our social connections and understand why they are key to our wellbeing.