A Yorkshire charity supporting people living with communication issues after stroke and other types of brain injury is calling for volunteers in Harrogate ahead of launching their new Aphasia Café in the town.
Aphasia Support, which provides speech, language, and communication therapy to patients throughout the region, is launching its sixth Aphasia Café at the Knaresborough Road Health Centre in September.
- The cafes offer a fantastic opportunity for people living with aphasia to meet up, share experiences and build their confidence in communicating. It’s a great way to socialise in a supported environment, while enjoying a range of activities, such as quizzes, games, and arts and crafts.
- The Harrogate café will be supported by a qualified speech and language therapist but will otherwise completely rely on volunteer support to run it. Aphasia Support is looking for people who may have a few hours spare each month to help run the café, serving drinks and cakes, and help to facilitate sessions.
- The very first Harrogate Aphasia Café will be held on Thursday 14th September and every second and fourth Thursday of each month between 10:30 and 12:00 at Knaresborough Road Health Centre, Harrogate, HG2 7LU.
James Major, CEO of Aphasia Support said:
We’re delighted to be launching our sixth Aphasia Café in Yorkshire. We’ve already got sessions running twice a month in Leeds, Halifax, Wakefield, Barnsley, and Doncaster, and have since recognised a real need for similar community support in Harrogate following an increase in referrals.
Our events are a great opportunity for those living with aphasia and their carers to meet others dealing with the same challenges, with the support of an experienced speech and language therapist. Although, as a charity, we rely on the generosity of volunteers to help run the cafes.
So, we’re on the lookout for new faces in Harrogate to join our team. If you’re looking for a volunteer role, or if you have an interest in speech and language, we’d love to hear from you. You don’t need any speech and language experience and we provide full training.
Pat Malin, one of Aphasia Support’s Barnsley Aphasia Café volunteers since 2021, adds:
I love seeing people grow in confidence the more they attend the café. I’ve made so many great friends since I started volunteering for Aphasia Support. We’re like a little family.
If you’re interested in getting involved, you can find out more at Aphasia Support’s website: www.aphasiasupport.org
How Aphasia Support helps…
- Aphasia is a complex language disorder which affects a person’s ability to speak, read, write and understand language. The leading cause of aphasia is stroke, with a third of the UK’s 1.2 million stroke survivors living with the condition.
- There are over 350,000 people in the UK with aphasia, but almost 85% of the public have never even heard of the condition.
Aphasia Support helps those living with aphasia to work on key communication goals with the support of speech and language therapists. The charity matches patients with a trained volunteer who works with them on a one-to-one basis, using a variety of computer therapy programmes and supported conversation techniques.
