News article
Skylight Café London powers the London Revolution
The Crisis Skylight Cafe London provided catering for the London Revolution, a 180 mile cycling event around London for 1,200 people.
The café provided food ‘pitstops' of bananas, flapjacks, biscuits and Soreen maltloaf along the 180-mile route, and finish-line home-made cakes, with compliments from riders coming in from Twitter:
Reaction on Twitter to the service has been favourable. @TheMAMIL tweeted:"Thanks for the much needed nutrition (bananas, flap jacks, malt bread, crisps) during #LR2012 @RevolutionRides. Most Appreciated!" while @robbzizz said: "And big thanks to the lovely girl working for @crisis_uk, who heeded our advice about crisps. Savoury is good! #LR2012http://pic.twitter.com/UOaPmn0N"
The Crisis Skylight Café London is a social enterprise and art space open to the public five days a week from 8am to 5pm near Spitalfields Market in East London, which offers homeless and vulnerably housed trainees a route into work in the catering and hospitality industries.
Café manager Cassia Weaver said: "This was a brilliant opportunity for our trainees and staff to showcase the top-quality food and friendly service they provide day in, day out to customers in East London. Such a large and unusual event is also a valuable experience for our trainees who are moving towards employment and on to better things."
The project opened in August 2004 and has since helped over 100 trainees, 59 of whom have now moved on to gain permanent employment in the service industry. On average the café now places two trainees back into work each month.