Cafe brews jobs for homeless and cash to raise sunken Ark

Streetwork UK has just been given planning permission to convert a vacant shop between Greggs and the now defunct Quiznos Sub into a new cafe to be staffed by the homeless.

The cafe, Captain Taylor's Kitchen, will be designed to rehabilitate its homeless staff by providing a steady wage and workplace training, as well as raising money for Streetwork's other projects.

These include the reopening of the Ark Cafe, which operated out of New Street as a soup kitchen from 1936 until its closure in 2007, when the council pulled its funding following a dispute with management.

If everything goes to plan, Captain Taylor's Kitchen should be open to the public in time for the Festival, with The Ark reopening shortly after.

Streetwork chief executive Gordon Watson said: "The cafe plans have been brewing for quite some time since we took over the building, but we had struggled to find funding.

"We have now been given a grant by the Scottish Executive enterprise fund for the refurbishment, and hope to open it as a takeaway cafe and coffee shop.

"The main aim will be to create employment and training for people to overcome their problems, but it will be run as a proper cafe open to the general public.

"We plan to open up initially with experienced staff to get the place up and running, and then starting phasing in homeless staff as time goes on."

Training will be provided under Streetwork's new Higher Ground Training Scheme, focussing on confidence building, interview techniques as well as gaining certificates and qualifications in skills such as IT, health, hygiene, service and hospitality.

Mr Watson added: "There's no stigma attached to being homeless. We want it to be a place where people come for a cup of coffee and decent service, and leave knowing that they've contributed to a good cause."

Streetwork has been providing support for the homeless since 1992, and runs several services including a crisis centre on Holyrood Road, formerly known as the Cowgate Centre, and other support services on New Street and Bellevue Street.

It also previously operated The Ark until its closure in 2007, when the city council controversially cut its funding following a reported rise in complaints about street drunks and aggressive beggars.

A Streetwork spokeswoman said: "This will be a stepped programme beginning with easy entry to healthy eating and thereafter a range of specialist support provided by our current Streetwork teams. Members will have the opportunity to volunteer in the caf or other areas of the centre and receive training and qualifications."