Villagers been encouraged to wake up and smell the coffee as a campaign to open a permanent café and shop in Greatham is hotting up.

Nearly 200 people signed an online petition to support the establishment of a café/shop in the village hall within a days of the page’s launch.

Founder Sue Godby feels Greatham needs a central place where people can gather, enjoy a coffee and purchase food essentials.

She believes the success of the Taste Truck by the playground has highlighted the community’s desire for a permanent indoor space with colder conditions ahead.

Greatham Parish Council are aware of the campaign as the request for a community hub is on this week’s full council agenda.

The request comes as village hall trustee press ahead with plans to install a trim trail as it’s a long-standing aspiration. But with the lease for the Taste Truck nearing an end, Sue and her counterparts believe the café-shop scheme should take precedence. 

Supporters claim the café-shop would meet immediate needs and provide a steady source of revenue, which could be used to fund the trim trail and future projects.

“Having the Taste Truck has been fantastic,” said Sue, who said the committee is aware of the campaign and claimed the parish council have been supportive.

“It’s really demonstrated there’s a need for somewhere in the village where people can meet and can have a coffee.

“We’ve got two big developments due in the village, so perhaps they could give funding towards it?”

“There’s an urgency because if the Taste Truck goes then it would be a disaster. We’ll lose the impetus that we’ve been building so we would love something to happen sooner rather than later.”

To sign the petition look for ‘Greatham shop’ at www.change.org