Under-threat Sheffield Rose Garden Cafe will be restored - council

The Rose Garden Cafe in Sheffield's Graves Park was opened in 1927

A park's cafe which had been under threat of demolition will instead undergo restoration work.

The Rose Garden Cafe in Sheffield's Graves Park was shut at short notice in July 2022 due to structural concerns.

At a special meeting on Wednesday, councillors approved plans to renovate the cafe, which dates back to 1927, instead of demolishing or replacing it.

Campaigners welcomed the decision to restore the building, but said members remained "nervous" over its future.

Following the cafe's closure, it reopened as takeaway-only in December 2022.

A feasibility study was commissioned to establish the condition of the building and the level of repair and refurbishment works it would need.

Five options were then assessed by Sheffield City Council, including demolition, structural stabilisation and refurbishment, or a complete rebuild.

Caroline Dewar said the Friends of Graves Park were still "nervous" over the cafe's future

On Wednesday, the council's charity trustee sub-committee agreed to shelve replacement or demolition work and instead work on restoring the landmark cafe.

According to the local authority, a full refurbishment could cost up to £1.7m, while structural stabilisation of the existing building with "light touch refurbishment to cafe interiors only" would cost around £911,000.

Caroline Dewar, chair of the Friends of Graves Park, welcomed the news, but said the group still had some reservations.

She told BBC Radio Sheffield: "Unfortunately, we are in uncharted waters here because what the council in previous times has said has not necessarily been what's happened.

"We are still very nervous at Friends of Graves Park as to what's going to happen here.

"It could be the beginning of something really good - it could be the beginning of Sheffield City Council actually working with the people."

Following the decision, a city-wide consultation would now be launched, according to the council.

A complete refurbishment of the Rose Garden Cafe could cost up to £1.7m, Sheffield City Council said

However, Ms Dewar said that was unnecessary in light of a petition launched by the group last year.

She said: "What concerns us is how much time and money that's going to take, and is that really the best way of finding out what people want?

"We know what people want: they want the cafe to be restored and reopened."

Councillor Ian Auckland, chair of the sub-committee, said the consultation would look at what should be done to refurbish the building.

"The consultation is a way of demonstrating that the council has changed, is listening, and is better," he said.

The partnership group looking at the long-term future of the Rose Garden Cafe is expected to start meeting in November.