The village pub offering free tea or coffee and chat to anyone suffering

Alfie and Stacey Newland, inset, and The Half Moon in Main St, Skidby
-Credit: (Image: Reach Publishing Services Limited)


The new landlord and landlady of a village pub are reaching out to anyone who may need a chat after one of their customers confided in them about a heartbreaking loss.

Alfie and Stacey Newland, who recently took on The Half Moon in Skidby, near Cottingham, have decided to offer a free cup of coffee to anyone going through a hard time who might want to sit in the pub's cosy snug room with a hot drink and talk through their troubles.

Sadly, Alfie and Stacey's own lives have been affected by the tragic consequences of depression and anxiety with Alfie losing several ex-military friends and Stacey, a relative, to suicide. Alfie feels it is more important than ever to get people talking and feels the pub could be the centre of the community.

He said: "We've got a connection with depression and anxiety and I'm a veteran as well and have lost a lot of friends to suicide. It's always been a passion of ours to help people that we can who are suffering."

Alfie said a customer recently came in who was "absolutely broken" after a bereavement and needed somebody to talk to. Alfie talked to the customer and realised he wanted to do something to help other people in similar situations.

"We are a pub but we need to be a hub for the community as well, not just a boozer," he said. "My wife and I came up with the idea that we would donate 50 cups of coffee and tea so if anybody is feeling lonely or lost or anxious they've got somewhere they can come and talk to us and other people and make friends.

"It's for any age group and demographic, young, old, men, women, girls, couples. We just want to provide a safe space to come in and not be alone, primarily."

He added: "There's people everywhere that are struggling. We put a post on social media and it's got hundreds of views and shares so there is obviously an issue with mental health and people know there is an issue with it."

Alfie said people who want a free coffee or tea and a chat just need to make themselves known and he will speak to them "day or night". He said several people have approached him and had a hot drink and a conversation.

"People come in and say 'I'm really struggling at the moment,'" Alfie said. Even if people are not comfortable asking for help, Alfie said he can read people who are "uncomfortable" and offers them coffee and tea without having to be asked.

Even on a busy Saturday, Alfie said people can use the pub's cosy snug for a chat. "It keeps me awake at night knowing there are people who are so lonely that they feel like they have got nobody so we want to do something if we can," he said.

Since he made the Facebook post about the idea, locals have donated more tea and coffees and biscuits. The Half Moon is also now collaborating with The Silent Book Club Hull and allowing the snug to be a peaceful space for people to read in silence or meet up with fellow readers from 6:30pm on Monday evenings,