A MUCH-loved cafe at risk of having to close has been granted permission to stay in business.

The future of Marshall’s Cuisine in Bank Top, Blackburn, the town’s only Kurdish eatery, had been threatened when it was revealed that owner Khadam Hussain opened the cafe without planning permission.

The council had authorised ‘enforcement action’ to close the restaurant last October.

However at a final decision planning meeting councillors and planners agreed to allow the premises, which also houses a shop, to continue to operate.

As reported in the Lancashire Telegraph last month, the news of the potential closure had led to the launch of a community petition to show the amount of support for the business in the area.

The petitioners said that it would ‘change the character of the street’ if the cafe was forced to close.

Mr Hussain, a Pakistani-born businessman had previously been turned down after applying for official status on two occasions.

He said he believed that the building already had the relevant authorisations in place when he took it over last year.