The Brandon Trust is a charitable trust which runs and develops services for people with learning difficulties across  the South West, supporting them in living the lives they choose. A few years ago, the Trust began to develop a vision for a cafe on Yatton Station that could provide both training and employment in a rural part of North Somerset - most training and employment opportunities are limited to Bristol and Weston-super-Mare.

Seventeen students on NPTC Catering and Retail courses have now learned the skills necessary to work in a busy cafe. Some have been working in other catering establishments, and one has already found paid work, while others are ready to transfer to the cafe when it opens, and they have all obtained their food hygiene certificate. The students are mainly young, and are working towards being able to progress to open employment. Some of them are already getting involved with setting up the cafe, for example by helping with the survey of rail passengers, and by providing catering at fundraising events. We hope they will also be fully involved in decision-making about the way the cafe operates. 

After the initial phase of development by the Trust, the project has been handed to over to the Community Interest Company, which is carrying forward the Brandon Trust vision for a community cafe which also provides first class real-life training and employment opportunity for adults with learning disabilities.