Aphasia is an acquired impairment affecting approximately a third of stroke survivors and is a lifelong disability that can lead to social isolation, loss of independence, and restricted social activities.
The Barnsley aphasia café was set up as a place where people with aphasia and their partners can drop in and meet each other, share their stories, and take time out to relax.
The fortnightly aphasia café supports people with the condition to practise their language skills and develop their confidence in communicating with others in a safe, friendly space. It’s held at local leisure facility Barnsley Metrodome, which is easily accessible by public transport, and is run with support from a speech and language therapist, therapy assistant and trained volunteers.
As well as offering people with aphasia and their carers the chance to meet others with similar experiences, the café also helps to raise public awareness of the condition.
A café user said: “It’s like a peg on my week giving me a routine. It’s what I do on Monday. It comforts me, if there’s something I want to talk about I can put it to bed. No-one will judge me. I wish it had been there earlier in my life.”
Find out more in this video, which was produced when the café was shortlisted in the ‘Improving health and wellbeing’ category of South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust’s internal staff awards, ‘Excellence’: [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent="yes" overflow="visible"][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type="1_1" background_position="left top" background_color="" border_size="" border_color="" border_style="solid" spacing="yes" background_image="" background_repeat="no-repeat" padding="" margin_top="0px" margin_bottom="0px" class="" id="" animation_type="" animation_speed="0.3" animation_direction="left" hide_on_mobile="no" center_content="no" min_height="none"][embedyt] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLUYyhx24ls[/embedyt][/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]