Cafe to offer free life coaching for abused women

Sandy Joseph is combining her knowledge of hospitality and life coaching training

A life coach is launching free sessions for women who have been abused, are menopausal or have anxiety.

Sandy Joseph, 47, from Wokingham, Berkshire, is opening The Coffee and Coach Cafe as a "wellbeing hub", having spent 13 years in the hospitality industry before retraining as a life coach.

She first started offering sessions, twice a month, from her living room at home following the pandemic.

"I realised that a lot of women are lonely, struggling to talk with friends or have no friends to talk to," she said.

The Coffee & Coach Cafe is due to open on 23 September

She previously owned her own cafe in west London before retraining as a life coach.

She said: "Women would come and talk about everything and anything, menopause, relationships and abuse."

She continued: "I have had so much feedback from coaches, psychiatrists, psychotherapists - everybody just wants to get involved from mental health institutes which is great."

During the day the cafe at Hogwood Industrial Estate will offer coffee, while in the evening Ms Joseph plans to host coaching sessions and workshops there - some will be free while others will be paid for.

They will include talks from business coaches, marketing coaches and menopause experts so there will be a "diverse range of services that will benefit many women".

Free events include a walking club which will run twice a week for an hour, a "coach to 5k" were you can run and talk, as well as a group session for mental health, once a month.

"This is something that's just getting bigger and bigger every day, which is just amazing," Ms Joseph said.

The Coffee & Coach Cafe is due to open on 23 September.