- Women only
- Friendship, not dating
- Free to join
- Local guide
- October 19, 2026
Make Friends in Stafford, along the Isabel Trail
Stafford’s Victoria Park has kept its Green Flag for 20 straight years, and Stafford has more cohabiting couples than the regional average.
66,900+
people in Stafford’s 12 town wards, Baswich to Weeping Cross (Census 2021, ONS)
13%
Stafford households that are cohabiting couples; regionally 11% (Census 2021)
27%
Stafford people between 25 and 44, a little above the West Midlands figure of 25% (ONS)
Stafford crafts, reads and speaks Italian
The craft club at Stafford Library in Staffordshire Place, on Tuesday mornings, is a friendly way to make friends in Stafford. On Thursday mornings the library runs an Italian language café, on the second Tuesday of each month a reading café, and a U3A writers group meets there twice a month. Isabel Trail parkrun starts close to the centre on Saturdays, and Gofrendly helps Stafford women find company.
Stafford: park, theatre and parkrun
What is Victoria Park in Stafford like?
Victoria Park opened in 1908 and is the largest formal park in Stafford borough, with the River Sow running alongside. A £2.5m restoration finished in 2020 brought back the bandstand, and it has an aviary, Albert’s Café, a play area and the County War Memorial. It won its 20th Green Flag in 2026.
Where is Isabel Trail parkrun?
Isabel Trail parkrun is a 5k there and back along the tarmac Isabel Trail, starting and finishing at the end nearest Doxey Road, close to the middle of Stafford. The trail can flood after heavy rain, so check the Stafford parkrun page before setting off on a wet Saturday.
Which groups meet at Stafford Library each month?
Stafford Library in Staffordshire Place runs a craft club on Tuesday mornings, an Italian language café on Thursdays from 11am, a reading café on the second Tuesday of the month and a U3A writers group on the first and third Mondays. Ask Stafford Library staff about one-off talks.
Stafford women: how to find friends close by?
Gofrendly, a women-only friendship app, shows Stafford women others nearby, from Baswich to Holmcroft, so they can exchange messages and then plan a meeting. A walk through Victoria Park to Albert’s Café, with tea by the aviary, is a gentle first plan.
Stafford, a county town for couples starting out
Stafford is Staffordshire’s county town, with the River Sow winding past Victoria Park and the timber-framed Ancient High House on Greengate Street. In its 12 wards, unmarried couples living together account for 13% of households and people aged 25 to 44 for 27% of residents, both a touch above the West Midlands. If you moved here with a partner for work or a first home, you may know the neighbours by sight but have few friends of your own.
A new start can be lonely, but Stafford is easy to explore. Victoria Park, opened in 1908, has a restored bandstand, an aviary and Albert’s Café, the Gatehouse Theatre on Eastgate Street had over 180,000 visitors in its busiest year on record to March 2026, and the Ancient High House charges no admission. A farmers’ and artisans’ market comes to Market Square one Saturday a month. Stafford Leisure Centre has an eight-lane pool. Places to start:
1
Stafford Library in Staffordshire Place, Tipping Street.
2
Victoria Park and Albert’s Café.
3
The Isabel Trail, home of the Saturday parkrun.
4
The Gatehouse Theatre on Eastgate Street.
5
Stafford Leisure Centre and its eight-lane pool.
LOCAL TIP
Join the Thursday Italian café and you will be making plans in two languages.
How to
Stafford friendships: where to begin
1
Take a project to the Tuesday craft club at Stafford Library.
2
Practise Italian over coffee at the library on a Thursday morning.
3
Run, walk or volunteer at Isabel Trail parkrun.
4
Book Gatehouse tickets for you and a Stafford woman you matched with on Gofrendly.
Friendship, from our editors
Behind the Stafford page: our founders
Gofrendly founders Claudia Gård and Ulrika Lilja wrote this Stafford page in collaboration with our editors, for Staffordshire women who have set up home with a partner, started a new job or bought a first home and want friends nearby.
Friendship looks different at every stage
More guides for women in this area – each with its own local advice.
Friendship looks different at every stage
More guides for women in this area – each with its own local advice.
Find women near you
See who’s nearby and say hi — it’s free to start.