Daisies Café

Information on Daisies Cafe - a cafe/catering social firm.

Background:
Scrabo Catering Enterprises was established in January 1999 to develop a Community business, which would provide employment and training opportunities for marginalised social groups including people with mental ill health and learning disabilities. In June 2000 it opened Daisies, a café/catering establishment located in the Old Ards Hospital Site. The business provides a café service for patients, workers and visitors to the hospital, as well as to the general public.

The enterprise operates as a Social Economy Enterprise (SEE); owned and managed by community representatives and all profits are reinvested into the business. As with all SEEs, the company is managed by a voluntary Board of Directors made up of community representatives with specific skills and knowledge relevant to the business and its social aims and objectives, and the board includes members with backgrounds in health care and catering.

Business Objectives:

To provide sustainable employment for young adults with mental ill health and learning disabilities.
To provide a suitable environment for the training and development of trainees in the catering industry.
To develop both in-house and outside catering facilities to serve the local market.
To comply with current health and safety regulations.
To comply with environmental health legislation within the Borough Council area.

Business operations:

The business currently offers three types of business service:

A coffee shop – in an area of the hospital previously used as a ward, which has been converted for these purposes. The coffee shop is open from 9.00 am – 5.00pm, Monday to Friday.
A sandwich service – for local offices
Sale of own products – the business produces a range of ‘own tray bakes’ etc. for sale at the coffee shop.

Success so far:
The enterprise has been successfully trading since June 2000, employs 4 full-time staff and provides training and employment opportunities for 12 people who would normally be excluded from opportunities of this kind. In 2001 the project was presented with the Southern Regional Community Business Award by LEDU (Invest NI) for outstanding services. In September 2001, the company achieved its financial targets and broke even. It is now in the process of expanding Daisies to provide a Home Entertainment Catering Service. This new service will provide a supply of dishes to be taken home by customers and create new jobs.

Benefit to the Community:

Provision of sustainable employment to disadvantaged groups within the community. ·
Provision of training opportunities for disadvantaged groups.
Improved quality of life for employees and trainees.
Improve future employment opportunities for trainees.
Introduction to the community of an enterprise initiative.
Provision of a local service, which meets an identified market need

The project has been supported by

Ulster Community & Hospitals Trust
Ards Local Strategy Partnership Board Ltd
Lottery Community Fund
Invest NI Community Business Programme
Calouste Guilbenkian Foundation
Enkalon Foundation
Henry Smith Charity

For further information contact Jenny or Eleanor
Daisies Café
Ards Hospital Site
Church Street
Newtownards
Co. Down
Tel: 028 9182 1921