Location & Contact
- Address
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SWAN Transport
Unit B, 1 Waterloo Road
Radstock
BA3 3EP
United Kingdom - Phone
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01761439548
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sofia@swan-transport.co.uk
- Website
Contact Person
Sofia Perkins
About
The group usually meets at a café in Radstock once a month.This keeps our transport costs as low as possible and helps friendships form amongst people who live near each other. This is important as it encourages attendees to interact further between group meet-ups. However, attendees also tell us that it is the routine, structure and support of the whole group that makes such a difference to their lives.
Cuppa & Chat is unique due to:
• the groups’ focus on supporting the most isolated and/or lonely
• the provision of door-to-door transport to-and-from the group
• the friendliness of the group: it really does feel like a ray of sunshine upon entering
• the attendees’ familiarity with the volunteers all the way through the service, from the journey to the session itself
In addition to monthly meet-ups, we enhance the impact of Cuppa & Chat further by taking the group to locations and activities slightly further afield three times a year (e.g. a steam railway, Chew Valley Lake, Weston-Super-Mare etc.) - places that would be unimaginable for our attendees to visit without the support of our volunteers.
We currently (March 2026) have 20 residents join us for these sessions, and for many, this is their only regular social interaction.
We work hard to secure small grants from local funders to make this service possible. To improve the group’s financial sustainability, we aim to increase our community fundraising activities over the year ahead, alongside our existing trust fundraising efforts.
We know this thanks to the wonderful feedback we receive regularly from our attendees. For example:
• “I am partially blind and find it hard to walk. Cuppa & Chat is brilliant, such a friendly group and its good for my health, I don’t like to miss it.”
• “It gives me something to look forward to.”
• “It’s the only time we get out.”
Evidently, this group is a key component in the battle against chronic loneliness for some of the most vulnerable residents of rural BANES.
If you or someone you know could benefit from joining SWAN's Cuppa & Chat sessions, please get in touch.
Location Map
51.293046, -2.4470133
Last updated: 27 August 2026
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