Community kitchen plans to buy old bank building

A group in Somerset wants to buy a former bank to turn it into a community centre.

Crewkerne Community Kitchen plans to include a cafe, studios, offices and workshops if the plans come off - but they first need to come up with thousands of pounds.

After paying for the initial valuations and surveys, the group would then rely on government grants and charities to complete the purchase and renovation of the former Natwest bank.

Volunteers at Crewkerne Community Kitchen run three sessions a week in the town distrubuting food that shops can no longer sell.

Speaking to BBC Radio Somerset, chair of the organisation Michael Fox said there is a "hole" on the high street where banks used to be, and wants to see the space used by different parts of the community.

His wife Kate added the pair have set up a crowdfunder to try and raise the £4,000 needed to get the project off the ground.

"Initially, we want to check what people want really - it's all about Crewkerne and all about what people here want and what they want to see the high street become really," she said.

"We're quite lucky in Crewkerne, there are lots of businesses still open, but there are also gaps on the high street and the Natwest has been sitting empty for quite some time."

Mr Fox added: "We can't do this on our own, we need lots of people from the community to come together and bring this to reality, so raising the money is fantastic... even if you can just give £1 it shows your support."

He hopes that by raising the money it will show major funders the project is worth more investment.

The couple want to transform the ground floor into a cafe space, serving what they describe as healthy and low-cost food.

They then want to offer spaces such as offices or workshops for artists at a lower rent, in an effort to "run it on a shoestring... and keep it going forever".

Mr Fox said the owner of the property is willing to sell the building, and while estimates for the initial phases of the sale sit at around £4,000, he hopes to raise much more than that from the community.