Join other 'Mush' mums from across Sheffield at this new weekly session

Mush is an app that launched in the UK in 2016, to encourages mums to connect with each other and get out and about across cities in the UK. It was set up by two mums who met in a rainy playground and formed an instant friendship, and now has over 500,000 members.

And now, a new weekly meeting space is launching in Sheffield, as part of a 12-week trial in Costa Coffee stories across the North of England. The collaboration with Mush will look to provide support for new mums to help them feel part of their local community. This is the latest initiative to be launched as part of Costa Coffee’s nationwide Community Programme, which allows stores to become social hubs for their local communities.

Mush co-founder, Sarah Hesz, said: “We’re excited to be working with Costa Coffee to provide a safe space for members of the Mush community. We created Mush to connect mums locally and now three years on, we are the leading social app for new mums in the UK. We’ve received so many lovely reviews – it’s amazing to see how much the app can help.”

Mush acts as a safe place for members to share mum-friendly news, send online messages and organise meet-ups, all with the aim of forming lasting friendships with those in a similar position. The importance of this issue has been recognised by the Duchess of Cambridge, who previously worked alongside Mush founders, Katie Massie-Taylor and Sarah Hesz, as part of the Heads Together campaign to shine a spotlight on perinatal mental health.

Victoria Moorhouse, head of sustainability at Costa Coffee, said: “It’s clear that there continues to be a real need for businesses to provide social spaces for people to meet up and have face-to-face conversations. Our coffee shops have always played an important role within communities; acting as a hub for people to meet, spend time together and most importantly, talk. We are really pleased to be partnering with Mush to help bring mums together.”

A national survey commissioned by Mush found that 22 per cent of mums only have one local mum friend, and 50 per cent find it hard to make mum friends. The study also revealed that 60 per cent regularly go a full day without adult interaction, and 82 per cent thought that having mum friends would make them a happier mum.

The trial launches at Costa Coffee Meadowhall Drive-thru, on Vulcan Road, on September 16. Download the Mush app for more information on when and where these sessions will be held across Costa Coffee stores.