Followers open "wonderful" Community Café in school

A group of Christians from the local churches, calling themselves the “Followers of St Peter’s”, set about launching the pop-up café in one of the spare classrooms at St Peter’s C of E Primary Academy with the support of the Headteacher, Mr Ollie Martindale.

The young mum and her son, one of the first through the door, echoed the view of many who came along to the Community Café, part of former vicar of St Michael’s Bemerton, the Revd Simon Woodley’s vision for the new housing estate of St Peter's Place on the north-west edge of Salisbury. The café is open to parents and children, as well as for the residents of the St Peter’s Place housing development.

Picking up on the purple colour theme within the academy, the Followers converted the classroom into a beautiful and welcoming place for parents, children and residents, providing fresh coffee, tea and plenty of cakes, as well as more healthy fruit juices, snacks and fruit.

Richard Chitty, Lay Chair of the Salisbury Deanery said:
"It provided a lovely space for the Followers to chat with the parents and residents and to find out what was going on.

"The Followers were only able to launch the Community Café through the generosity of the Headteacher, the advice and support from Mrs Christine Fordham, the Outreach Worker from Bemerton Methodist Church, and a generous grant from the Aldhelm Mission Fund to help cover the set-up costs."

It is planned to open again during on Friday 29 March, and then on a more regular basis on Friday afternoons during the summer term.

As the community grows, it is hoped to see the establishment of a Pioneer Minister living on the estate and a School and Family Worker for both the Primary Academy and Sarum Secondary Academy, and that the Pioneer Minister will be able to use Academy Hall as a church and hold regular services throughout the year.