Protect special café from prayer group takeover

THE other day, during the chaos of Christmas shopping, I visited the Oasis Café in Ilkley. It was lovely, festive decorations, wonderful service and lovely food, and an experience I would highly recommend.

It is a café with a difference run by volunteers, teenagers and adults with learning difficulties providing them with a public forum to work and learn new skills.

For the people with learning difficulties who work there, it is like a real job, not a church project. It really is the best of Christianity in action.

Sadly, the future of this wonderful resource is in jeopardy. Although the café has been running since 2000, due to an administrative error, its lease – which is currently based in a building owned by All Saints’ Church in Ilkley – is to be taken over by national prayer group Sanctuary, which plans to hold prayer meetings and hymn singing in the premises.

Liz Baddaley, co-founder of Sanctuary, said it was “unfortunate” but the group, which moved to Yorkshire from Hertfordshire 18 months ago, still plans to take over the site.

I find it very sad that a café that provides such a valuable resource to people with learning difficulties who are already a marginalised part of society could be forced to close and urge people to support them in their protest to remain open.