Community cafe,bookable event space, flexible training rooms - an excellent, award winning and fully accessible experience for our customers. The Usual Place is a unique skills academy providing life-changing opportunities for young people with additional support needs through our social enterprise and community cafe. Our cafe, set in the beautiful former Townhead Church, is a welcoming space for everyone as well as a great venue for meetings and events. Food is freshly prepared and baked daily to order by young people learning and training under the individual mentorship of highly skilled staff. Please note, the cafe can be very busy, especially at lunchtimes so you can book tables in advance by calling 01387 253 485. The Usual Place is the trading name for Inspired Community Enterprise Trust Ltd, a Social Enterprise and Charitable Organisation Company Number: SC412597. Registered Office: The Usual Place, Academy Street, Dumfries, DG1 1BZ. Since 2015, we have delivered education, training and work experience to thousands of young people with additional support needs from Dumfries & Galloway. The Usual Place is an award-winning social enterprise, a unique skills academy and popular community café in Dumfries, Scotland.
***Everyone is of equal worth
***Everyone can contribute to their community
***Everyone deserves dignity and respect
Our Skills Academy and Early Enablement programmes provide a personalised, structured, supportive route into employment and citizenship for young people with
additional support needs. Young people gain practical café and hospitality training, accredited SVQ qualifications in Professional Cookery and Customer Service and real-world experience. Many of the young people we work with would otherwise be invisible, excluded, or at risk of
isolation and loneliness. At The Usual Place, they discover belonging, purpose, and the chance to fulfil their potential as valued citizens who make meaningful contributions to their communities. Through mentorship in our cafe as well as a range of experiences at a special events, we also build communication, confidence, health and hygiene, teamwork, and independence —preparing young people not just for work, but for life as active, confident citizens. We focus on promoting the innate talents and capabilities of young people with additional support needs, enabling and empowering them to flourish, and challenging stereotypes every day.
