A LOCAL charity café has received a welcome boost thanks to a £1,000 donation from Nationwide.

The Olive Tree Café provides opportunities for people fighting to overcome struggles with mental health and managers say the recent gift has made a world of difference to what they are able to achieve in the kitchen.

The money went towards a brand new combi oven and last week representatives from Nationwide joined North Swindon MP Justin Tomlinson to see for themselves the new possibilities it has opened up for the staff.

Café Manager, Phyllida Richards, said: “This donation came from our application to Nationwide’s community fund.

“Before we had a small baking oven and we were using it for everything – specials, baking, cooking our main menu through the day.

“That meant it was almost impossible to manage with that many people trying to work together in the same space.”

After taking advice from local catering professionals, the team decided that the best long term solution would be a combi oven.

The money from Nationwide was combined with a donation from the Rotary Charity Ball to fund the purchase and installation of the new equipment.

“Not a day goes past now where one of our customers will tell us it’s the best breakfast they’ve ever had and we couldn’t achieve that without having a decent bit of kit in the kitchen.

“The nice thing about that is I can go back into the kitchen and feed that back to the guys and girls in the kitchen – it’s absolutely fantastic.”

Chloe Keen, Senior Manager for Community at Nationwide, said: “We try and make sure that as much as possible our employees and staff have a say in where our money goes.

“We do that through employee champion committees, they review applications from local charities including this one from the Olive Tree café.

“This donation of £1,000 is for their oven and in previous years we have funded the kitchen garden and other kitchen equipment.

“We always say that the money is important but the difference it makes is the main thing – actually seeing the impact it has on a day to day basis is fantastic.”