A Dundee charity has been forced to close its community café as the cost-of-living crisis hits business.
The Roundhouse Community Café in Whitfield will shut its doors for good on Friday December 15.
Run by charity Signpost International as an extension of The Roundhouse Community Kitchen, the café first opened in November 2021 and aimed to combat food waste in the city.
But a lack of passing footfall, coupled with the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, has forced the Lothian Crescent establishment to shut up shop.
Food Project Coordinator Louise Barclay-Fraser said she was sad to see the café closing but unfortunately it’s no longer sustainable.
She said: “The café was originally started to fight food waste.
“We have a project here (at the charity) that takes waste from local farms and shops and we turn it into meals to put out to foodbanks and churches etc.
“So the café was an offshoot of that and we wanted people to come and use it – we are putting out healthy food.
“But the cost-of-living crisis is really affecting people now, it’s a major factor behind why we are closing our doors.
“It’s not even breaking even. We were not looking to make a profit but we didn’t want to make a loss either.
“We are really sad the café is closing because it’s a lovely, really welcoming place.”
Although the Roundhouse café is shutting its doors to the public, the charity will continue to use the space for gatherings, and social events for the local community.
“We are still using the café as a learning resource for the schools, there are cooking classes for example,” said Louise.
“And there is a hub of children who are autistic who come over every Friday afternoon to use the café and have some cake and juice.
“So we are still using the space.”
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