How this cafe is helping people rebuild their lives, one hot chocolate at a time
Some of the team at Chocolate & Co in Lowther Street, l-r Lisa Kerry, Kristof Gotts and Linda Barrie
Chocolate & Co: The York cafe serving up second chances.EXCLUSIVE report by MAXINE GORDON
LISA KERRY couldn't keep a job for more than a week.
"Often I'd lose my job after two days – the longest I kept a job was for one week," she says.
"I've always been a worker, but the alcohol got in the way of that. I'd get a new job, then get really, really drunk and not turn up the next day.
"I was at a level of alcoholism where I could not keep a job."
Today, she is the project leader at York cafe Chocolate & Co in Lowther Street in the Groves.
Lisa Kerry, project leader of Chocolate & Co
It is a unique York initiative helping people affected by addiction and other difficulties back into work.
Now long sober, Lisa has been with the cafe since it opened three years ago, progressing from volunteer to cafe supervisor and now project leader.
The model is deceptively simple: a cafe selling food and drink, but where the emphasis is on giving people a second chance.
"We're not just employers," explains cafe founder Linda Barrie and her daughter Mariah, who held Lisa's job before her promotion. "We become someone's family support – it goes far beyond just training at the cafe."
Linda Barrie, founder of Chocolate & Co
That support takes many forms – including regular one-to-one counselling – but one aspect Mariah speaks proudly of is how they help staff turn their housing into a home.
The initiative is called 'Make Four Walls a Home' – where staff and volunteers pitch in to help new arrivals clean, decorate and furnish their homes.
It's about turning an empty space into somewhere they can begin again, says Mariah. Because having an address and having a home aren’t always the same thing, she stresses.
Hot chocolate at Chocolate & Co in Lowther Street, York
The cafe's impact in its brief three years of operation has been revealed in a new report.
One key finding is that Chocolate & Co has supported 37 people through its programme, including 22 in paid employment, while also offering volunteer opportunities.
It has recorded 66 training achievements, spanning food hygiene, allergens, safeguarding, first aid, and barista skills, and delivered 763 hours of one-to-one counselling.
Some of the team at Chocolate & Co in Lowther Street, l-r Lisa Kerry, Kristof Gotts and Linda Barrie
Another impressive figure is the amount of money pledged through the cafe's 'pay it forward' scheme, which allows people to donate cash so less fortunate customers can access complimentary food and drink at the cafe.
In three years, the 'pay it forward' project has seen food and drink worth £35,457 given to customers in need.
Ultimately, Chocolate & Co is a community hub and inviting cafe, specialising in hot chocolate inspired by Linda's sister business, the York-based chocolate manufacturer Choc Affair.
WATCH – What makes Chocolate & Co in York special:
And it has won national recognition, not just with a BBC community award, but also featured on the Beeb in an episode of Songs of Praise.
The episode saw presenter, Rev Kate Bottley, visit the cafe and highlight its pioneering work.
Rev Kate Bottley who visited the cafe for Songs of Praise
Following her visit, Kate immediately raved about the cafe on her Instagram account to her 113,000 followers.
Next to a photo of the distinctive orange exterior of Chocolate & Co, Kate wrote: "There’s a lot of things to feel sad about so here’s something lovely. This place and the people are a joy! @chocandcouk is a not for profit cafe that not only has a #payitforward scheme but also works with those experiencing addiction and former prisoners providing employment and support that goes way beyond a wage packet.
"The lovely Linda, who was inspired to set up the cafe after the death of two of her friends to addiction, told me ‘It’s not ‘them and us’ we all mess up in one way or another every day, but we dust ourselves off and start again. There’s a lot of love here.’
"She’s right, and the hot chocolate is the best I’ve ever tasted."
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Other celebrity backing has come from top author Joanne Harris, who penned the best-seller Chocolat, which was later turned into a film starring Juliette Binoche and Johnny Depp.
In March, Joanne held a Q&A in York to tie in with her latest novel Vianne (a prequel to Chocolat) as part of a fundraiser for Chocolate & Co.
Chocolat author Joanne Harris who is now a patron of Chocolate & Co. Image: Kt Bruce Photography
That connection is making an impact in its own right, said Linda.
"She has become our patron. We can quote her – she is a strong advocate for what we are doing – it's just brilliant."
Other support comes from local businesses, some of which have set up salary sacrifice schemes to benefit the cafe and its work.
As for the future, Linda plans to continue what the cafe does best.
"We want to give people structure and purpose and change their lives."