Re-open The Lakes Café at Hetton Lyons Country Park as a learning café offering volunteering and learning opportunities for learners and individuals with special educational needs, autism and learning difficulties and disorders. The disability friendly and dog friendly café will also add a needed facility to Hetton, providing a resting space, available 7 days a week serving hot and cold food and drinks to the public. Hetton Lyons Country Park is based in the Coalfields. This improvement will help to establish the park as a destination for people from other areas of the city to visit the park and the wider area. Currently the park is used for several large events each year, what it lacks is consistent footfall and the plan for the reboot of the Lakes Café is to create another reason for people to repeat visit. The opportunities for those working at the cafe include customer service, catering and food hygiene, budgeting and managing finance and self-confidence and personal skills.

What we'll deliver:

• Volunteering and employment opportunities for young disabled people with special educational needs
• Toilets and facilities will be open 7 days a week to the general public
• The Country Park will become a permanent regional attraction for the public
• Provide permanent on site catering for all events in the calendar.

Why it's a great idea:

Springboard has a long history of delivering training across the region, we successfully managed the park in partnership with Sunderland City Council since 2003. We will be incorporating The Lakes Café into our Springboard Futures delivery. The young people with special educational needs (SEND) from Futures will, supported by their carers and support workers, learn the skills needed to work in catering and hospitality. They will gain valuable work experience, industry specific qualifications and the chance of employment. 1: Volunteering and employment opportunities for young disabled people with special educational needs. 2: The Café will ensure that the toilets and facilities are available 7 days per week to the general public, this is currently 5 days per week (Monday-Friday) 3: The sustainability of the centre as a whole will be bolstered and will establish the country park as a permanent regional attraction for the public.

Steps to get it done:

• Acquire catering infrastructure within the café area, improved hand wash facilities for people with disabilities.
• Café furniture for customer seating and eating area.
• New improved décor in partnership with Springboards Social Enterprise Project.
• Introduction of the new project with learners and their carer’s and parents.
• The Lakes Café relaunch at the beginning of the 6 weeks School Holidays.