Lack of volunteers threatens to close charity cafe

Church warden Anne Kemp and her husband Derek volunteer at the cafe

A charity-run cafe is warning it may be forced to close if it cannot attract new volunteers.

Bede's Bakehouse, which operates within Sunderland's St Peter's Church, has seen the number of helpers dwindle from about a dozen to a handful.

Chair of trustees Joshua McKeith, who also represents the area on the city council, said the cafe was approaching a "crisis".

"One by one, our volunteers have taken a step back and are now on the other side of the desk having a cup of coffee rather than serving it," he said.

Mr McKeith said the cafe always had a turnover of helpers, but the number was now slowly decreasing.

"It's a worry because it will take a toll on the remaining volunteers," he said.

"It's never had any financial worries, which is fantastic especially given the current climate, but, once the current volunteers get to a point where they're no longer able to support us, how do we operate?

"It's starting to face a crisis."

The cafe operates within St Peter's Church in Sunderland

Although the two are separate, the charity running the cafe said it aimed to support the church by contributing to the cost of repairs.

Some funds would also be used to "encourage people to visit and learn about how fundamental it was to the Church of England", Mr McKeith said.

"We're in the process of making a five-year plan where we've saved up quite a bit of capital to reinvest in the church," he said.

"But the worry is we do all that work and the Bakehouse will have ceased operating due to not having anyone to help run it."