New Cwmbran café opened by two mums who met by chance
They have now been granted planning permission to open their Mindful Munch café at the Community Hall in Pontrhydyrun Road in Pontnewydd, Cwmbran.
The café is the brainchild of 31-year-old mother of one Ms Jones, from Cwmbran, who has previous experience in hospitality and who wanted a a welcoming space for people experiencing mental health difficulties while former highflier Ms Othen wanted to help others after her own experience of perimenopause.
The 46-year-old mum of two, also from Cwmbran, said: 'We both had the idea we wanted to do something to help people with mental health. I had been through perimenopause and had a little anxiety from that.
'I used to work in sales for BT for 21 years before taking redundancy and thought, what do I want to be doing? I'd been in sales, making rich people richer, and wanted to do anything to help people and with mental health as I'd been there personally.
'Sarah came up with the idea for a café.'
Ms Jones said her plan has been 'shaped by my own lived experience and a deep passion for creating a safe, welcoming space for our community' and wanted to combine 'good food with mental health support'.
She added: 'It will be a place where people can connect, talk and feel understood without judgement.
'During my own journey with mental health, I realised how important it is to have spaces that offer both nourishment and emotional support.'
Ms Othen said the pair wanted a be away from the busy 'hub' of the town centre and the 9am to 3pm weekday opening hours fit in with their commitments as mums and making use of times the community hall, which will continue to operate, is normally closed.
It is also intended to work with mental health charities to offer workshops and support sessions.
Torfaen Borough Council, which granted change of use planning permission, to allow the cafe to operate from the hall, received 29 letters of support and six objections, mainly related to car parking.
The planning department said there were no objections from the highways officer who said there is sufficient parking for users of the hall and adjoining sports facility while the cafe's weekday opening means there will be no impact on weekend parking.
An opening date for the café has yet to be announced.
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South Wales Argus
4 days ago
- South Wales Argus
New Cwmbran café opened by two mums who met by chance
Samantha Othen and Sarah Jones enrolled on a council-backed course in January and decided to put their personal and professional experiences together as a way of creating a business and supporting the community. They have now been granted planning permission to open their Mindful Munch café at the Community Hall in Pontrhydyrun Road in Pontnewydd, Cwmbran. The café is the brainchild of 31-year-old mother of one Ms Jones, from Cwmbran, who has previous experience in hospitality and who wanted a a welcoming space for people experiencing mental health difficulties while former highflier Ms Othen wanted to help others after her own experience of perimenopause. The 46-year-old mum of two, also from Cwmbran, said: 'We both had the idea we wanted to do something to help people with mental health. I had been through perimenopause and had a little anxiety from that. 'I used to work in sales for BT for 21 years before taking redundancy and thought, what do I want to be doing? I'd been in sales, making rich people richer, and wanted to do anything to help people and with mental health as I'd been there personally. 'Sarah came up with the idea for a café.' Ms Jones said her plan has been 'shaped by my own lived experience and a deep passion for creating a safe, welcoming space for our community' and wanted to combine 'good food with mental health support'. She added: 'It will be a place where people can connect, talk and feel understood without judgement. 'During my own journey with mental health, I realised how important it is to have spaces that offer both nourishment and emotional support.' Ms Othen said the pair wanted a be away from the busy 'hub' of the town centre and the 9am to 3pm weekday opening hours fit in with their commitments as mums and making use of times the community hall, which will continue to operate, is normally closed. It is also intended to work with mental health charities to offer workshops and support sessions. Torfaen Borough Council, which granted change of use planning permission, to allow the cafe to operate from the hall, received 29 letters of support and six objections, mainly related to car parking. The planning department said there were no objections from the highways officer who said there is sufficient parking for users of the hall and adjoining sports facility while the cafe's weekday opening means there will be no impact on weekend parking. An opening date for the café has yet to be announced.
South Wales Argus
12-08-2025
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Sugar Rogue gym, Cwmbran seeking planning permission
The Sugar Rogue gym, that offers Cross Fit and Hyrox workouts and training sessions, is run by not-for-profit operator Thornhill Community Leisure Ltd and for the second time in a year has found itself having to apply for retrospective permission to continue to use an industrial unit as its base. It only moved to the Springvale Industrial Estate in Cwmbran, in February after Torfaen Borough Council's planning department demanded it stop using its previous unit at nearby Woodside Park and launched enforcement proceedings over the unauthorised change from industrial use. Thornhill Community Leisure has now submitted the retrospective application seeking permission to change the use of its current base from 'storage and distribution' to D2 permission that covers assembly and leisure. Its application states the existing unit has been vacant since 2017 and a letter from a commercial property agent supporting the change of use, based on a market assessment, has also been provided. No physical changes to the exterior of the existing building, other than the addition of two bird and bat boxes, are planned but the operators have already kitted out the inside to provide a training areas, the installation of a mezzanine floor, equipment zones, changing facilities and staff spaces. Its application states the firm has previously worked with the council to offer single sex training sessions and as part of its commitment to supporting the community helped raise £15,000 for the Velindre cancer charity and even offered a GCSE in weightlifting. Information submitted with its application states: 'The facility runs a number of targeted initiatives, including youth fitness sessions to support early intervention in health inequalities and women only classes to address gender based barriers to participation. The facility also offers a GCSE weightlifting syllabus. 'In early 2024, the organisation partnered with Torfaen County Borough Council's Sports Development Team to deliver Project X (a free of charge, 10-week fitness and wellbeing programme exclusively for men in the borough). 'Hosted at the Sugar Rogue gym, the initiative combined CrossFit, military style training and mindset coaching to improve participants' physical and mental health and exemplified the organisation's ongoing commitment to community focused health interventions. 'In May 2025, Thornhill Community Leisure Ltd. raised £15,000 for the Pink Appeal at Velindre Cancer Centre through a series of community fundraising events, including fitness challenges and sponsored workouts.' The application explains a retrospective application for its previous location is still undecided but it understands the planning department isn't in favour of approval due to the loss of designated employment land and concerns over the location of the use, which is considered contrary to both national and local planning policy that promote town centres for retail and leisure use. According to the application the operating hours would be from 6am to 8.30pm on weekdays and 8.30am to 11am on weekends and there are already 79 parking spaces associated with the unit while a bike rack with 10 spaces would also be provided. The application is being considered by the planning department.
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