Kindi Cafe and Play - Opening Event

Kindi Cafe and Play opens its doors at Marlborough Road Methodist Church on Wednesday 4 November, with a drop-in session from 10 am to 2 pm. It's a new soft play cafe for under-fives, so it's built for the toddlers and preschoolers in the house, with coffee on hand for the adults while they run around. There's no need to book, so you can just turn up when it suits you.

It's run by the St Albans Community, the same team behind the nearby sister site Cafe on the Corner, and it's set up with a double brief: fun for the kids and work experience for the adults the organisation supports. That second part is where the two sites link up. Adults with learning disabilities and other support needs do the cooking at Cafe on the Corner, and their cakes and baked goods are served here at Kindi. The cafe itself then gives them a chance to gain customer service and retail experience and to connect with the wider community.

So the cakes you'll see on the counter come from one site, and the people serving them get their experience at the other. It's a nice way of seeing the two work together in one place. The soft play is aimed at children aged 2-5, and once the opening day is over, the cafe will be open Tuesdays to Fridays. The opening session is £4 per child, from 10 am to 2 pm at Marlborough Road Methodist Church, Marlborough Road, AL1 3XG.