THE University Church in Oxford has defended its decision to serve an eviction notice on the company that has run its café for the past two decades. The church, St Mary the Virgin, says that it has been in “extended negotiations” with the current licensee to try and find a way forward.

The PCC of St Mary’s has plans for development of the site occupied by the Vaults & Garden café, in Radcliffe Square. The site includes the churchyard, the Old Congregation House, which dates from 1320, and ancillary buildings.

Will Pouget, the café’s director, told the Oxford Mail that he was given just three months’ notice to close, and that his company would suffer significant financial loss as a result. He has launched a petition on change.org to try to keep the café open.

A spokesman for the PCC said this week: “The University Church of St Mary the Virgin welcomes around half a million visitors each year to one of the most beautiful squares in Europe. A planned new social enterprise, repairs to stonework, replanting of the gardens and a major redevelopment of the café facilities at Radcliffe Square will ensure a much loved space can continue to welcome visitors for years to come.

“While we have sought to engage the current licensee constructively about our plans for some time, we have not been able to reach agreement about the way forward.

“The current café will close to enable redevelopment, and it is hoped that a new café, operated as a social enterprise, will open its doors in the spring 2025 with pricing set at an affordable level for students and local residents.”

A notice to quit was issued in May 2023 by the PCC’s lawyers, and an eviction notice was issued last week. The spokesman said that both the PCC and the diocese of Oxford had received correspondence welcoming the move.