A £100,000 appeal has been launched to fund new premises for a cafe staffed by people with learning difficulties when its current home is leased to a prayer group later this year.

There was widespread dismay in November when it was announced The Oasis cafe, in Ilkley, would have to move out of its base owned by All Saints’ Church to make way for full-time prayer group Sanctuary.

Now organisers are hoping to raise cash to fund a move to “bigger and better” premises in the town.

Ilkley Baptist Church minister the Rev Stuart Jenkins, who is also the chairman of the church committee that runs the cafe, CTI2000, said: “We are sad to leave our old premises.

“The cafe has been there for ten years and it has been a great place. It will be a shame to move on but we hope for something better. We would like somewhere bigger with more tables, a better kitchen and easier access. We are still investigating possible premises but we want somewhere in central Ilkley.”

The cafe opens two days per week and provides employment opportunities for learning-disabled adults. It operates as a charity and has paid a token rent for the use of the building.

CTI2000 plans to increase the opening hours of the cafe to five days per week but first must raise enough money to cover the cost of buying a business or taking on a new lease plus refurbishment expenses and the first year’s rent. The cafe is expected to fund itself after the first year.

Mr Jenkins said he hoped £20,000 could be raised by the community and the remaining £80,000 could be sourced through grants. The cafe’s lease expires in April but Mr Jenkins said the charity had been allowed to stay until the end of July. He said he hoped the cafe could open again in Ilkley in the autumn.

He added: “The cafe project isn’t just a charitable project for people with learning disabilities. It is a proper job. They are doing something useful and they get a lot of self esteem from it.

“Customers of the cafe have a wonderful experience. It is a happy place to go where the community can interact with people with learning disabilities. It makes the community a more balanced and rounded place to live. It is important that we can retain it for the benefit of everybody.”

A meeting to form a fundraising committee and discuss ideas for the new cafe will take place in the Baptist Church Hall, Kings Road, on Thursday at 7.30pm. There will also be entertainment and refreshments.