A CAMPAIGNER has been given a special award by the Prime Minister for his inspiring work in spreading happiness across the globe.

Stan Rosenthal founded the UK’s first “Happy Cafe” at the Emporium cafe in London Road, Brighton, in 2014.

He wanted customers to connect over a cup of coffee, talk about what is happening in their lives and learn how to be happy.

Since the successful launch, Stan, a member of Action For Happiness, has inspired other cafes to join the movement.

Stan, who previously worked as a civil servant for UK Export Finance, has supported 100 Happy Cafes in the UK and internationally.

There are branches in Hastings, Northampton, Swansea, Dublin, Edinburgh, Dubai, Malaysia, Cambodia, Hungary, and even at the Sacred Valley of the Incas in Peru, to name but a few.

One of the organisation’s patrons is His Holiness The Dalai Lama.

Stan, who lives in Lindfield, has received a personal letter from Theresa May.

In it she said: “By pioneering the concept of Happy Cafés, you have created a simple and effective way for people to improve their wellbeing and connect with members of their community.

“Your commitment to helping others develop happier lives is remarkable and you should feel very proud of the difference Happy Cafés are making to people across the country.”

Stan, who was promoting the International Day Of Happiness yesterday, said: “I am absolutely delighted that the Happy Cafe concept and the wonderful Action For Happiness movement behind it have been officially acknowledged in this way – and on the eve of the International Day of Happiness too.

“The message we are trying to get out to people is to talk about what is making them unhappy, finding ways to overcome that and focus on what really

matters like family, friends and nature.

“Our aim is to improve wellbeing and to build a more caring society.

“There are a lot of distractions in this world, such as materialism and finding ways to put more money in our pockets.

“We want to change people’s way of thinking.

“If we focus on personal wellbeing and prioritise things that really matter, this can help us develop better policies to tackle global problems like climate change.”

The Happy Cafe idea was borne out of Action For Happiness, which started in 2010.

It has more 2,000 members in Brighton and more than 100,000 in 168 countries.

Stan said: “I was thinking of ways of how to get people to connect. I was walking past some cafes and then the idea came to me.

“Cafes are a relaxed environment and it makes people feel more comfortable talking.

"In our Happy Cafes, people can pick up a badge and wear them, and if they see someone also wearing a badge they introduce themselves.

"We also run get-together events and we have created a few projects to inspire people and this includes the action calendar. Each day a person needs to meet a daily goal of staying happy and relaxed.”

For more information go to actionforhappiness.org