A POPULAR Bradford community cafe which recently announced closure has managed to secure funding to stay open until January 2023.

Bread + Roses on North Parade, at the 'top of town', has reached its crowdfunding target of £20,000 in little under a week.

More than 150 people have pledged their support and together donated over £10,000, which has been boosted with a £10,000 pledge from the Power to Change Crowdmatch Fund, and taken crowdfunder campaign above its £20,000 target in the first week.

The campaign is now appealing for people to help fund the project further and reach a stretch target of a further £10,000,  further safeguarding the cooperative by giving the team more time to restructure and secure sustainable grant funding.

The public response to the threat of losing a popular city centre community venue and meeting space inspired the team to do everything it would take to rescue Bread + Roses.

With few immediate grant funding opportunities available, and no way of raising the shortfall through repayable finance, the only solution was to launch a public crowdfunder to try to raise the £20,000 it needed to continue trading into 2023.

The money from donations will safeguard the jobs of three full-time and seven part-time employees, and allow Bread + Roses to continue.