Our Story

An old community centre. A slightly mad idea. A lot of people who believed in it.

This building has been part of Cheltenham since around 1947. For generations, people came through these doors to meet, celebrate, play, dance and spend time together.

Then the building fell quiet.

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Inside the Common Ground community cafe, with artwork on the walls

A corner of the cafe with plants, books and armchairs

Sofas and tables in the restored community space

Community CaféFriday 9am–4pm · Saturday 9am–4pm · Sunday 10am–2pm

Brooklyn RoadCheltenham, GL51 8DS

Getting hereParking available. Bike rack available. Bus A stops nearby. Dogs welcome.

Pen-and-ink drawing of the Common Ground building

When we took it on, there was a lot to do.

Old floors. Tired rooms. Leaks. Mystery wires. Approximately 847 layers of previous decorating decisions. And somewhere underneath all of it — enormous potential.

So we got to work. With thousands of volunteer hours, support from local organisations, funders, businesses, residents and a small team stubborn enough to believe it could be done, the doors opened again.

Phase One has brought the café and several community spaces back into use. But we're nowhere near finished. There are more rooms to restore, more accessibility improvements to make and a dedicated youth space we want to create.

Common Ground isn't a finished project. It's a building coming back to life. And that's part of the magic.

Before. Now. Next.

Before

A much-loved community building that needed serious investment, imagination and care.

Now

A community café. Rooms full of activity. Art. Coffee. Workshops. Children making things. People meeting people. Thousands of volunteer hours. And life back in the building.

More of the building brought back into use. A dedicated space for young people. Better accessibility. More art and culture. More community programmes. More opportunities for local people. And plenty we haven't thought of yet.

We're only getting started.

Built with community.

Common Ground hasn't been created by one person or one organisation. It's been built through people showing up.

People lending tools, moving furniture, fixing things and occasionally asking whether we have completely lost our minds. Probably. But look what happened.

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Volunteers painting walls
Businesses donating materials
Organisations sharing expertise
Artists bringing ideas
Residents telling us what they need
Customers buying coffee
Funders taking a chance on the vision

A place for everyone

We mean that.

Common Ground is for people of different ages, cultures, nationalities, abilities, identities, experiences and circumstances. You don't have to fit into a particular box to belong here.

We care about accessibility from the beginning rather than treating it as an afterthought. We care about people being treated with dignity and respect. We care about creating opportunities for people whose voices aren't always heard.

And we believe communities are stronger when different people actually have opportunities to meet each other.

We don't expect everyone who walks through our doors to be the same. That would be incredibly boring.

People. Purpose. Planet. Accessibility.

These are not only ideas — it's at the heart of everything we do.

People

People come first. Always. We create opportunities for connection, belonging and participation.

Purpose

Common Ground exists for more than generating income. Every coffee, room booking and event helps us create social value and invest back into our community.

Planet

We're bringing an existing building back into use, working towards reducing waste and energy use and choosing local, responsible suppliers wherever possible.

Accessibility

A community space isn't truly a community space if people can't use it. We're working to make Common Ground physically, socially and culturally accessible — including considering disability, neurodiversity and different ways people experience spaces.

We bring people together.

Common Ground Cheltenham is run by Mission Inclusion CIC, a not-for-profit Community Interest Company. We create spaces, programmes and opportunities that help people connect across backgrounds, generations and cultures.

Common Ground is that mission made physical. A place where inclusion isn't a poster on the wall. It's who gets invited in. Who gets heard. Who gets opportunities. Who can participate.

“There is a place for me here.”

Income generated through Common Ground is reinvested into our community work, programmes and the continued restoration of the building.

Discover Mission Inclusion

Help us bring the next bit back to life.

We've achieved a huge amount. But there is still a lot of building waiting behind closed doors. Future phases include restoring additional areas, improving accessibility and creating a dedicated space for young people.

There are lots of ways to help.

Donate
Volunteer
Fund a project
Sponsor a room
Donate materials or expertise
Become a community partner
Hold your event here
Buy a coffee

Every one of those things moves Common Ground forward.

Donate Partner With Us Volunteer

Have an idea?

This might be our favourite page.

Common Ground isn't supposed to be a place where we decide everything and the community simply turns up. If you have an idea for a workshop, event, exhibition, community group, collaboration, activity or something wonderfully strange that you think belongs here — tell us.

You don't need a perfectly written proposal. Start with:

“I've got an idea…”

We'll take it from there.

Tell Us Your Idea

Visit Common Ground

Come and find your place.

Where: Common Ground Cheltenham
Brooklyn Road, Cheltenham, GL51 8DS
Get directions
Community Café: Friday 9am–4pm · Saturday 9am–4pm · Sunday 10am–2pm
Getting here: Parking available. Bike rack available. Bus A stops nearby. Dogs welcome.
Questions, room hire, partnerships or brilliant ideas: hello@commongroundcheltenham.com

Or just come in. Coffee is usually a very good place to start.

The hand-painted Common Ground Café sign, and freshly baked pastries