I am really sad to share the news that the wonderful Cairns Café has announced its closure after many years of serving the local community.

The non-profit café, based at Cairns Road Baptist Church in Westbury Park, has been a huge support to many parents and carers for more than 15 years, as well as providing a special place for young children to play and have fun.

If you have been a long-term reader of Bishopston Mum, you will know I have written about Cairns Café many times over the years, writing about my own visits there with my children, praising the friendly volunteers, the safe and happy environment, and of course, the amazing cakes.

The Cairns Café team were forced to make the difficult decision to close due to challenges and uncertainty around Covid 19, and were unable to find a way to move forward.

The team explain:

“We have loved being able to open the doors of the church and share our yummy cakes with the community 15+ years, and we know this will be as heart-breaking for many of you as it is for us. 

“We have hugely appreciated your support over the years and value the friendships we have made, the staff and myself are and will continue to miss you all.”

However, the team are hoping that it is not a complete “goodbye”, and since closing, the Cairns team have been working on new ways to support and connect with the local community, especially the young families who used to visit the cafe.

In the meantime, the team has recently held a “Decorate a Cupcake” creative project giving local families the chance to design fabulous colourful cupcakes as a way to share their happy memories of the cafe.

I am certain that many readers will have equally happy memories of Cairns Café and will feel as sad as I do about its closure.