The Centre · 01757 642 177 f

SELBY - EST. 2017

A MENTAL HEALTH CHARITY

Need someone
to talk to?
We're here for you.

Mental health support, rooted in Selby. A drop in centre, and a furniture shop that quietly pays for it all.

TransPennine Express TEWV NHS Selby Radio Sport England SimVenture Rucklidge Law North Yorkshire Council NHS Lumo Hull Trains Greencore Escrick Park Andy’s Man Club

FOLLOW THE CENTRE

FOLLOW THE STORE

WHERE WE SELL

We're a Selby-based charity with a simple promise: nobody has to do this on their own.

Everything we do begins and ends with mental health and wellbeing. Nine years in, what started as a conversation in a café has grown into a drop in centre, a furniture shop, art classes, trips, and a network of volunteers quietly looking after the mental wellbeing of Selby and the towns and villages around it.

0+

Meals & Food
Parcels
Provided Last
Year

0–45

People
Supported
Daily

0+

Conversations
Had With Us
Over The Past
5 Years

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Total Journey
Miles

0

Passenger /
Client Trips

Minibus
Journeys Last
Year

Our work, every single day

What we actually do

Six service areas, dozens of touchpoints, one open door. We work with local people for local people, making sure nobody in Selby is left to face things alone.

1000s

PEOPLE SUPPORTED EACH YEAR

5

DAYS A WEEK, OPEN DOOR

100%

FREE AT THE POINT OF NEED

01

4 ways we help

Support & Signposting

First port of call for anyone who walks through the door.

02

5 ways we help

Financial & Practical Support

Real help with the paperwork and bills that keep people up at night.

03

4 ways we help

Food & Essential Support

Nobody in Selby should go hungry, ever.

01

4 ways we help

Support & Signposting

First port of call for anyone who walks through the door.

02

5 ways we help

Financial & Practical Support

Real help with the paperwork and bills that keep people up at night.

03

4 ways we help

Food & Essential Support

Nobody in Selby should go hungry, ever.

04

5 ways we help

Mental Health & Wellbeing

A safe space to breathe, talk and feel human again.

05

5 ways we help

Communitea Connection

Tackling loneliness with proper days out and proper company.

06

5 ways we help

Housing & Crisis Support

Standing with people at the sharpest end of the cost of living crisis.

04

5 ways we help

Mental Health & Wellbeing

A safe space to breathe, talk and feel human again.

05

5 ways we help

Communitea Connection

Tackling loneliness with proper days out and proper company.

06

5 ways we help

Housing & Crisis Support

Standing with people at the sharpest end of the cost of living crisis.

WE WORK ALONGSIDE

Communitea Partnership Working

Stronger together — joined-up support across Selby.

Police NHS services Local councils MPs Communitea groups Homeless and rough sleeping team

Started with a
conversation.

Grew into a family

2017

Pay It Forward begins

It started with a simple idea across Selby — pay for a drink or a meal so a stranger could have one too. Kindness, on the house.

2017 → today

Mental Health First Aid

We've spent years quietly training the people of Selby, and beyond, to spot the signs and start the conversation.

  • Over 1,000 people trained in Mental Health First Aid
  • Recent training delivered with Greencore
  • Supported by Mental Health First Aid England
2020

Pandemic pivot

When the cafés shut, we built something new, fast. Café owners and our MHFA trainees became call handlers almost overnight.

  • Early online support model built with TEWV
  • Officially registered as a charity
  • Drop-in centre launched
  • Calls grew from ~100 a month to over 600 a month in the first year
2021

First support centre

We finally had a front door. The Centre and a drop-in space sat under the same roof, call us, or just walk in.

2022

A shop, a café, and a service user led charity

Three big steps in one year, and all of them led by the people who use our services.

  • Opened our first charity shop — affordable furniture and household items for people leaving homelessness or crisis
  • Started a drop in café with affordable and free food alongside support
  • Grew further as a service user led organisation
2023

Partnerships & expansion

The centre became a working base for the wider system. NHS teams started running services from our rooms.

  • Talking Therapies, Access Team, Early Intervention & Crisis Team
  • North Yorkshire Police, IDAS, Horizons, Sleep Safe
  • In house psychologist support introduced
2024

Support at scale

Around 56,000 calls answered in a single year, triage, a listening ear, and a bridge to crisis services when it's needed.

  • ~56,000 support calls handled annually
  • Excellent food hygiene rating
2025

A centre that hosts the communitea

The doors are open wider than ever. Local groups now use the centre to run things they care about.

  • Yoga
  • Prayer groups
  • Acting groups
  • Art groups
2026

What's next

We're looking at a communitea radio station and growing the wellbeing side of what we do. Watch this space.

Help us keep showing up.

Three quick ways to be part of what we do, pick whichever fits your week.

Volunteer Lend an ear. Drive a sofa. There's a shape that fits.
Visit We're open Mon to Fri. Pop in for a brew, lunch or a chat.
Volunteer Lend an ear. Drive a sofa. There's a shape that fits.
Visit We're open Mon to Fri. Pop in for a brew, lunch or a chat.
Visit in person

The Big Communitea
Store

Pop into our Selby furniture shop. Every purchase helps fund the centre, the centre and the people behind both.

Visit the store

A QUIET POUND DOING NOISY WORK

Support The Big
Communitea Centre your
way.

Every pound you give keeps the kettle on, the doors open and the support free. No middlemen, no fees, no fuss, just direct help for people in Selby who need it.

100% GOES STRAIGHT TO THE CENTRE

Ready to chat?

Whether you need a listening ear, a sofa, or somewhere to spend a Tuesday — we’re here.

THE CENTRE

10b Abbey Walk
Selby, YO8 4DZ
Mon, Fri · 9am – 4pm

THE BIG COMMUNITEA STORE

28 Gowthorpe
Selby, YO8 4ET
Mon – Sat · 9am – 5pm

Visit The Big Communitea Store

Ready to chat?

Whether you need a listening ear, a sofa, or somewhere to spend a Tuesday — we’re here.

THE CENTRE

10b Abbey Walk
Selby, YO8 4DZ
Mon, Fri · 9am – 4pm

THE BIG COMMUNITEA STORE

28 Gowthorpe
Selby, YO8 4ET
Mon – Sat · 9am – 5pm

Visit The Big Communitea Store