Deal Warm Welcome brings us together this winter

Published: 30 October 2025

Deal Warm Welcome returns next week bringing warmth, refreshment and friendship for everyone.

Now in its fourth year, the welcome sees doors open across the town and across the winter for guests to meet up, share a hot drink, a bite to eat and a good chat.

The five-month project begins on Monday 3 November and runs until the beginning of April 2026.

 

There are five venues opening their doors to guests and they are:

Mondays: St Richard’s Church on Mill Hill from 9am to 1pm
Tuesdays: Trinity Church 12.30pm to 3pm* and Deal Pantry (in Deal Welfare Club, Cowdray Square) from 2pm to 4pm
Wednesdays: St Andrew’s on West Street from 9am to 11am, Deal Pantry from 12pm to 2pm and St George’s in the High Street from 12.30pm to 2pm.

Immediate financial support is also available for those struggling to heat their homes or feed their families. Deal Town Council has awarded £4,000 in grant funding to the venues and project partners United Families, Deal Area Foodbank and Home-Start who directly support those in need in Deal.

Mayor of Deal, Cllr Mike Eddy said: “As prices rise and temperatures fall, our Warm Welcomes couldn’t have started at a better time.

“Working with venues and partners, we are able to give people vital support when they need it and continue to help build community in Deal, giving people a chance to find friendship, support each other.

“Deal Warm Welcome has continued to evolve to tackle more than a cost of living crisis, it brings people together, and that is such important work.”

New for this winter, Deal Town Council has teamed up with the Social Prescribers and are hosting a week of events at the Town Hall in January.

The week will include advice on managing money, getting involved in local groups, a special Hobby Day and coffee morning on Brew Monday (19 January).

Senior Social Prescribing Link Worker Katherine Shonk said: “A huge thank you to Deal Town Council for working with us and offering the Town Hall space. January can be a particularly tough time, with many people seeking support for finances, loneliness, and low mood.

“Having the opportunity to bring people together during one of the hardest weeks of the year is a wonderful way to promote our work and highlight the fantastic support available through local voluntary, community and social enterprise services.”

For more information about Deal Warm Welcome, please go to www.deal.gov.uk/dww.

*Trinity Church begins on Tuesday 2 December