In a recent HIP we introduced the Baton of Hope suicide awareness tour that will be arriving here in Hastings on Tuesday 23 September. The 20 stop biannual tour takes in a broad range of locations across the country, including Norwich, Kent and Bradford, culminating in a finale in London on 10 October. Hastings, the 13th leg of the tour, is the smallest host town on this year’s circuit.

The day is being co-ordinated by a cluster of groups, principally Mr Hastings and St Leonards, the Men’s Room Hastings and the HVA Community team, who have just released the route for the local stretch of the tour, which will see 48 baton bearers cross the town, and ending with a free community gathering on The Stade.

The day will begin with an early launch at Hastings Castle attended by local VIPs, who will see off the first of the baton bearers on their way down to Queens Road via Wellington Square, and then on to the bandstand in Alexandra Park, where there will be speakers and music.

From there, “a twisty turny slightly uphill section” of the route follows Laton Road, Mount Pleasant Road and Priory Road to the Ore Centre, before heading to the fire station on the Ridge via Hastings United football club and the Conquest Hospital, where baton bearers will be greeted by NHS staff.

The route will then move back downhill, taking in Sedlescombe Road North and the Four Courts tower blocks, before heading into the heart of Central St Leonards, taking in the seafront and Bottle Alley, which will be transformed for the day into a creative space displaying a gallery of words and images.

Bearers will detour to the Boyley Skate Park, to be welcomed by a choir at the White Rock Theatre before progressing through the town centre to the Old Town, where organisers are hoping to involve the miniature railway to transport baton bearers to the final destination on The Stade for an emotional musical finale showcasing the tour’s vision of a ‘ zero suicide society’.

Many local organisations and businesses have signed up to support the day, and others are encouraged to do so. To find out more about how to get involved, contact Jacy Kilvert at jkilvert@batonofhopeuk.org

Barry Ashley moved to Hastings and started up two pay-it-forward cafes, one in the heart of the town centre.

Over the last eighteen months or so, The Grumpy Cook on Robertson Street, a near neighbour of the former Debenhams, has been a lifeline and salvation for individuals and families struggling to put food on the table.

When asked about his mission, Barry says: “We are providing disadvantaged people with cooked meals for free” and, whilst to all outward appearances the Grumpy Cook looks like a pretty standard coffee shop, it is a social business that encourages those customers able to do so to ‘pay forward’, effectively sponsoring a drink or a meal for those less able to pay.

“I want to help people feed people but without any stigma, and when people come in here they would never know whether someone is eating cheaply, free or paying full price,” Barry tells us.

He has experimented with targeted events such an over 65s afternoon, with great success, providing a regular space for seniors to meet each week over a cup of tea and cake.

He has expanded this to start a men’s meal group, saying, “I will try and mirror what I did with the over 65s and just say that we’ve got a male only get-together with free food and free drink. The only condition is that people come round and are happy to meet new people – who often become friends.”

The Grumpy Cook is at 1a Robertson Street, Hastings. Go to table88.co.uk/the-grumpy-club for more information about Grumpy Men’s Club.