Rutland's weekly Neighbourhood Mental Health Café will take place at Oakham Library from May 2026 onwards, moving from the current location at Pepper's A Safe Place.

Neighbourhood Mental Health Cafes are an important free resource that offer support for local people struggling with their mental health.

They work as a drop-in for anyone to have a safe space to talk about their mental health in confidence, with no appointment needed.

These cafes are run on behalf of local councils and the NHS, with friendly, trained staff who can listen and provide free, practical support and signposting to other services.

Local charity The Rural Community Council will be taking over the running of Rutland's Mental Health Café from previous providers Pepper's A Safe Place. Pepper's will continue to offer mental health drop-in sessions throughout the week, in both Oakham and Melton.

The Rural Community Council charity has been working to support local communities for more than 100 years. This includes the charity's highly successful Rural Coffee Connect scheme, which has been travelling around rural Leicestershire and Rutland since 2019.

The Rural Coffee Connect van will be based at Tesco in Oakham from 11:00am to 12:30pm and 1:00pm to 2:30pm on Wednesday 22 and 29 April, handing out free hot drinks and promoting the new Rutland Mental Health Café, before it moves into Oakham Library in May.

For more information about mental health support in Rutland and Leicestershire, including the locations of other Neighbourhood Mental Health Cafés, visit: www.leicspart.nhs.uk/mental-health

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