A CAFÉ with a heart is celebrating ten years at the heart of the community.

Val and Joe Hutchinson launched Darlington’s unique Café JJ a decade ago after their son John, who has Down’s Syndrome, struggled to find a job.

Their venture is now thriving, with a team of people with learning disabilities cooking and serving homemade food from the Clifton Community Centre every Tuesday.

With the support of the local community, Café JJ has gone from strength to strength and given opportunities to a number of people.

Louise Hindmarch has worked there since its humble beginnings, with four generations of her family visiting to enjoy lunch every week.

Her mother, Maureen Pressley, said: “Louise has never looked back and it has given her so much confidence and so many skills.

“It’s wonderful to see this place continue to grow.”

Team JJ, who will be celebrating their tenth year with special offers and competitions throughout 2017, were thrilled to receive a funding boost from the Wood Group CATS on Tuesday.

Catherine Dulston, from WGC, handed over a cheque for £1500 and said: “We have so much respect for the team and wanted to support them.

“We’ve been very impressed by what they do, it’s always so busy and you can tell everyone loves working there.”

The generous donation will go towards funding new tables and kitchen equipment for the café.

Mrs Hutchinson said: “The only reason we are still here after all these years is because of support like this, from the community and from our loyal and lovely customers.”