Community centres in Conwy are being opened up to people struggling with heating and food bills because of the cost of living crisis.<\/p>\n
Soup and rolls along with cups of tea and coffee are being provided free of charge in the Warm Welcome\/Croeso Cynnes centres located across the county.<\/p>\n
Housing association Cartrefi Conwy and its subsidiary, Creating Enterprise, are managing the scheme in the community centres they run.<\/p>\n
They are working closely with Conwy County Borough Council who are making their libraries available as well, along with other housing associations and organisations in other parts of North Wales.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/em>The community centres taking part in Conwy are at the Park Way estate in Rhos on Sea, Y Fron in Colwyn Bay, Pentre Newydd and Kennedy Court in Old Colwyn and Chester Avenue in Kinmel Bay.<\/p>\n The times of the Warm Welcome sessions vary but they generally span the lunch period every weekday.<\/p>\n As well as helping people through the cost of living crisis, the project is also proving a hit as a way of combating loneliness.<\/p>\n The scheme is due to run until the end of next February.<\/p>\n Park Way resident Amelia Lovett, 88, said: \u201cWe are all worried about the cost of living crisis obviously and you have to think about what you\u2019re doing all the time. I\u2019m having to be more careful now. Heating is the main worry, trying to keep warm.<\/p>\n \u201cTo be honest, I\u2019m not watching any news either because the news is frightening. Heating is the main worry.<\/p>\n \u201cOpening the community centres is a wonderful idea. It gets you together.\u201d<\/p>\n It was a sentiment endorsed by neighbour Mandy Kordbagh, 58, who\u00a0said: \u201cIt\u2019s very difficult to make ends me and I\u2019m having to make choices. I\u2019m not putting the gas heating on. You just have to wrap up. It\u2019s quite a bit of a worry.<\/p>\n \u201cI think opening the centres like Park Way is a very good idea because you also get to know each other and have a good little chat. I like it.\u201d<\/p>\n Cllr Emily Owen, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Housing and Regulatory has been co-ordinating the response in Conwy and said \u201cWe are really pleased at the speed organisations have worked together to respond to the current situation across communities.<\/p>\n \u201cWe will continue to co-ordinate activity to ensure that our most vulnerable residents are supported through the winter months.\u201d<\/p>\n Cartrefi Conwy Managing Director Katie Clubb said: \u201cCouncils and housing associations across North Wales and a number of charities have come together because it\u2019s going to be a really tough winter for some people in terms of the cost of living, heating their homes and buying food when the prices are going up.<\/p>\n \u201cCartrefi Conwy is a part of the 2025 Movement involving a range of organisations across North Wales that are working to end health inequalities.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are pleased to be a part of the partnership work to respond and everyone is doing something a bit different.<\/p>\n \u201cCartrefi Conwy has set up\u00a0 the Warm Welcome\/Croeso Cynnes centres and the libraries are opening up as well with spaces for children to play.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re opening up our communal spaces where people can come and meet, have some soup and a roll and as much tea or coffee as they want.<\/p>\n \u201cThe original idea was to respond to the cost of living crisis but it\u2019s grown into something more than that because people are also enjoying the social element which is real bonus.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have come through a period where, because of Covid, people have been more isolated than ever so this is a great opportunity to combat loneliness as well.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s working really well because we have plugged another gap and we\u2019re being quite flexible.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re working closely with Conwy Council, who are co-ordinating the response in the county, to make sure there aren\u2019t any gaps in the provision, so that everybody can access and make use of the centres.<\/p>\n \u201cIf there\u2019s a demand for evening sessions or different days and locations we will do what we can to respond.<\/p>\n \u201cThis isn\u2019t just for Cartrefi Conwy tenants. This is for the whole community because the cost of living crisis can impact anybody.<\/p>\n \u201cIn a sense, this is what Cartrefi Conwy is all about because a core part of our mission is to bring people together and create communities to be proud of.<\/p>\n \u201cOur team have been brilliant in getting this off the ground and we will be flexible to meet the needs of each community.\u201d<\/p>\n Sioned Williams, the Community and Social Impact Manager at Creating Enterprise, \u201cThe cost of living crisis is going to hit everybody in different ways and people will find it quite difficult as we go through November into December it\u2019s really going to affect some individuals.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve already has some people saying to us they don\u2019t want to turn their heating on as much. We know it\u2019s an issue. It\u2019s really important that people know there\u2019s a warm space that they can go to.<\/p>\n \u201cWe also know that some people won\u2019t be able to get to the community centres so we also have to think about how we work alongside our partners to ensure they can have offers of support as well.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are all kinds of benefits to this apart from saving on\u00a0 heating bills at home. I\u2019d say that the social element is just as important.\u00a0 It\u2019s really laid back and friendly.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople really do get a warm welcome in every sense. It really is what it says on the tin.\u201d<\/p>\n To find out more about when and where the Warm Welcome hubs are available go to <\/strong>https:\/\/cartreficonwy.org\/get-involved\/upcoming-events\/warm-welcome\/<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n