Shaw church opening cafe with homemade cakes and treats

Coffee 3:16 will open on Tuesday (October 22) at Hope Church, Shaw, with homemade cake and artisan coffee available. 

The cafe will be entirely run by volunteers who are hoping to create a space where people can come to enjoy a welcoming atmosphere. 

They said that while making new connections and relationships is a main aim of the coffee shop, the space is also one where people can come to be on their own while enjoying a coffee and cake. 

The cosy interior of Coffee 3:16 (Image: Coffee 3:16)

The idea came as an extension of their existing Thursday coffee mornings and the desire to open the opportunity up to more people. 

Opening every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday 9am-4pm, all volunteers working in the cafe have completed the relevant food hygiene qualifications as well as the cakes being freshly prepared on site.

Hannah Evans, from Royton, is a member and volunteer at Hope Church and has taken on the task of baking the sweet treats for the cafe, having previously run a cake-baking business.

The 35-year-old: "We've been practicing our barista skills for quite a while now, and all had training.

Some of the cakes Hannah has made for Coffee 3:16 (Image: Coffee 3:16)

"Now we feel we're ready to open up to the public, everybody involved is a volunteer and we've all put in lots of hours.

"We want it to be a space where people can come in and get to know others, but it's completely led by the customer and so if someone wants to come in and have a cup of tea and cake on their own, we obviously respect that.

"We have quite a regular group that come in on a Thursday already that we've known for quite some time and for some of them, it's their only time that they get out of the house and so we do want to continue that."

The church also hands out food parcels in their Thursday 10am to 12pm sessions and supply a free hot drink to people in need of these packages.

Hannah said: "I'm a Christian and that's my main motivation for giving up so much time, it is a sacrifice but it's just the feeling that we have to love and serve the community of Shaw and get to know people.

"Coffee 3:16, the name, is based on the bible verse John 3:16 and I think that our mission to love and serve others is to communicate that love and hope."