Tooting Recovery Cafe

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Reviews

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  Gigi G

  I've been attending the Hestia Recovery Cafe in Tooting for a few months now. The facility is is poorly managed, and the staff are are poorly trained, and in addition, lazy and reluctant to help vulnerable service users. There is little understanding amongst managers and staff about mental illness, and how service users can be helped when they visit the cafe. There is a weekly timetable including activities such as yoga, art and relaxation. However classes are frequently cancelled, at the very last minute, with managers too lazy to give notice to service users, who have travelled to attend these classes. The current manager is lazy, and makes little effort to to ensure that teachers who are no longer able to run classes are replaced, so that the timetable of activities runs efficiently. You can purchase a basic microwave meal at a reasonable price, however for some reason, not after 8pm, even though staff are free and and do nothing for much of their shifts. Some the managers, staff and volunteers have displayed very inappropriate behaviour towards service users, however there is a strong culture of bullying & threatening service users who raise concerns, covering up staff misconduct and brushing everything under the carpet. Although this facility is very much set up to function as a drop in recovery centre, you are only allowed to attend up to three times a week, and if you exceed this, you will be told that you must only attend this facility if you are "in a crisis" and not to attend otherwise! It's very confusing! In addition, you are only allowed to attend for 2-hours on any given visit, apparently because of the risk of coronavirus. However the government has stated that no such measures are required for some time now. In addition, there are usually only two to three service users in the building at a time, and so it is perplexing as to why you can only stay for 2 hours before being told to go. The Hestia Recovery Cafe in Tooting could be a fantastic community resource for those experiencing symptoms of mental illness. However it is very poorly managed by lazy & incompetent managers & staff. It's Such a shame! Addendum: In response to the reply that I have received from the manager of the Tooting Hestia Recovery Café: It should be stated publicly that a number of people who have been attending the Hestia recovery have all informed me that service users who do raise concerns via the avenues suggested in the manager's response.....the manager, will completely deny inappropriate and unacceptable behaviour from staff. If service users escalate the complaint to steps two and three, by emailing the Hestia line manager and area manager respectively, they will all collude with the manager, and totally deny dangerous practices, unprofessional behaviour and inappropriate and often alarming behaviour from staff. As stated in my initial part of this review, if service users do express concerns, as recommended by the manager in his response, there is a strong culture of harassment and bullying of service users, and such service users are banned from attending the service via the management making totally false allegations against those who raise concerns about the poor and unsafe service. It is important that this information is in the public domain, so that vulnerable service users are aware of this culture of managers totally denying all unsafe practices, and then bullying and harassing service users who dare express concerns, by making up totally fake allegations to ban them from the service.

  27-01-2023
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  lovefrom justine

  A great service for those in need of mental health support. Highly recommend!

  27-09-2022
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  Gemma Wallis

  27-05-2022