Our South Lincolnshire Night Light Café, which runs every Wednesday and Thursday in Long Sutton at St Mary’s Church Hall, celebrated its third birthday in February 2025.
The Night Light Cafés are safe spaces that offer an out-of-hours, non-clinical support service and are staffed by teams of trained volunteers who are available to listen. They can also provide signposting advice and information on other organisations that may be able to help with specific needs, such as debt advice or emergency food parcels.
In our first year of supporting people, we had 332 visits from 31 individual visitors. In 2023 and 2024 there were totals of 736 and 785 visits respectively and so far in 2025 we are at 97. An average evening now sees 8/10 people, and sometimes 15 or 16.
Here, Richard shares how the volunteering experience has helped his own mental health and why other people should pop along to the Night Light Café and ‘give it a try.’
“My wife passed away at the beginning of 2022 and I was completely lost because we had been married for 42 years. CPSL Mind started a Good Mood Café in our village not far from Long Sutton in spring 2023, which was run by Nick and Sharon. I decided I would go along to that. In January 2024, I came to the Night Light Café and Sharon asked if I had thought about being a volunteer. I said to Sharon, “What have you seen in me, that I haven’t seen in myself?”
I enjoy everything about it. It’s helped me get over losing my wife. I meet people. Nick and Sharon have been really good to me. We had a lady come in some time last year, Nick said to me: ‘This lady has lost her husband, would you like to speak to her because you have gone through it?’ She said to me: ‘You’re the first person to understand what I’m going through’. I think if I can help one person, then I’ve done good.
I have my days when I’m not so good and I suppose I always will do but I have Nick and Sharon there to help me if I need that sort of help.
In the early days, people were quite worried about me, but they have seen a complete change in that time, certainly since volunteering. I help Sharon with the Pinchbeck Good Mood Café, and we have done a breakfast meeting a few months ago.
I had never considered reaching out for support – I didn’t know where I was going to be. If CPSL Mind hadn’t run the Good Mood Cafes, in the second year of losing my wife, I don’t know where I would have gone. Because I knew the people from the village who attended, it helped. We would catch up with local news and that helped. I have improved over time, there is no doubt about that.
Some people say it is more difficult when a man loses his wife – there is some truth in that. I can cope with practical things but not the emotional side of things. I’ve cried so many tears; I don’t think I’ve got any left now.
When Nick did the sessions in the village at the Good Mood Café, I’ve been in tears there, but I haven’t had any embarrassment with it. I’ve got a couple of lifelong friends, and they say to me: call up, ring us, we’re here.
It’s easy for people to think they have said the wrong thing when someone has passed away, but no one has said the wrong thing.
We all work well together, Nick, Sharon and me. It helps when you’re here. You just gel and there’s the banter and that spills over into the group. It helps everyone.
Come along and give it a try. Until you have seen what we get up to, you don’t know. I gave it a try, and this is where I am. People can see the improvement.
I’m very pleased about that and I think my wife would be. I never saw myself doing this.”
South Lincolnshire Project Lead at CPSL Mind, Nick Moon, said: “All volunteers are greatly appreciated but only having a few hours to spare in a week and missing sessions is, of course, the norm. Richard is different: He volunteers at the Night Light Café on both nights, every week, arriving early and staying late for setting up and packing away. Thank you, Richard, for being the third full time member of our team. On another note, Richard’s personal journey has been lovely to see and is testament to the work we do at CPSL Mind.”
Responding to Richard’s dedication to support the Night Light Cafe, CPSL Mind Good Life Facilitator, Sharon, said:
“Richard has come a long way from when I first met with him at the Good Mood Café at Whaplode Drove in 2023. One day I had a personal situation to deal with whilst hosting the cafe and Richard stayed behind to help me tidy away. As we were leaving, I thanked Richard for his help and said ‘it should be me helping you’. This led to Richard attending the Night Light Café Christmas party which in turn led to him becoming a volunteer. He is a valuable member to Night Light Café in Long Sutton and GMC Pinchbeck. Richard is always happy to help and is a great quiz master and even loves washing up! We thank all our volunteers for dedicating their spare time to help us at NLC.”
Our Night Light Café runs every Wednesday and Thursday at 5:00pm – 9:00pm, Long Sutton, St Mary’s Church Hall, Market Place, PE12 9JE
Contact: southlincs@cpslmind.org.uk for more information.
We offer a range of services to support wellbeing and mental health in South Lincolnshire. This includes our café sessions, which act as mental health support groups, giving you the chance to meet new people and boost each other’s moods! You can find out more about each of these below.
Contact our team
February 28, 2025
