A day service for adults with learning disabilities in Lowestoft was among the winners at this year's Suffolk Care Awards.
The Leading Lives Compass Café, which runs from the town's library, won the Food and Catering Award at the ceremony on Thursday, September 28, held at Trinity Park in Ipswich.
The Suffolk Care Awards, now in their second year, recognise excellent care practice in the county and highlight the important job that high-quality carers and innovative care providers and companies do every day.
The Compass Café is an innovative concept that supports people with learning disabilities to not only learn about nutrition and healthy eating but also provides a healthy eating venue for local people to use. The café provides catering services for the community centre and library. Service users are all trained to be baristas and work in the kitchen and front of house serving the public.
More than 200 people from the county's health and social care community attended the awards ceremony, with other winners including a team of carers from Leading Lives in Stowmarket who helped a man with learning difficulties move from a residential home into his own bungalow, which has been a catalyst for positive change to his life.
The team picked up the award for Promoting Dignity and Respect in Everyday Life, with Beech House in Halesworth highly commended in the same category.
The award for Culture, Creativity and Activities went to Baylham Care Centre, part of the Cardinal Healthcare Group in Ipswich, with the Lowestoft Leading Lives FABBA Group highly commended.
Hosting the awards were The Suffolk Brokerage, a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to raising care standards in Suffolk, and the Suffolk Association of Independent Care Providers (SAICP), a membership organisation involved with good care practice.
Liz Taylor, chairman of The Suffolk Brokerage said: 'It's been a wonderful night and a great opportunity for us to shine a spotlight on fantastic care practice in Suffolk. The category winners are worthy winners of their Awards.
'It was especially pleasing to see that Cardinal Healthcare's Baylham Care Centre won the innovative approaches to dementia category for the second year running. Since the judges carried out their verification visits, it was plain to see how the home has continued to innovate.'
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