Cafe Laziz

Touching support from locals has helped a café in St Helens establish itself in the hearts of a community in need.

Café Laziz is based in a children’s centre and opened in September 2019. Covid forced it to close last March, but with Kindred support, there are big plans for the future.

The café is staffed by asylum seekers and Deb Hill, who has helped them launch, says they are now eying their own building in the town centre.

‘’It’s been so successful., The volunteers do all the prepping and cooking and then we open to the public.

‘We have a pay-it-forward’ scheme so people can pay an extra £3 which pays for an asylum seeker to get their meal for free. We offer free children’s meals too.

‘The St Helens population has been so good and the City Region has been fantastic, particularly Kindred.

‘What I want next is for the women who started it, to run their own company.

‘’It’s taken Covid for people to realise the value of small businesses with their heart in local communities.’’