A CAFE owner has refused to change the name of her business after being told it was “wrong, disgusting, shameful and offensive” in an anonymous letter.

Shelly Harper, who runs the Greedy Pigs sandwich bar and diner on Paley Road, East Bowling, spoke out after receiving the worrying letter last week.

It has since been shared on social media, leading people to hit out at its message.

The letter says: “I am writing to you to inform you we as a whole community are extremely concerned about the name of your shop’s trade or the sign board. The name Greedy PIGS is extremely wrong, disgusting, shameful and offensive to the passer-bys and community.

“Please immediately change the name of your shop to something else which is not offensive. There is no need to call it Greedy Pigs.

“Use common sense. That’s not how you should be naming a shop. Not everyone in the communities believes in the same thing as you and not everyone agrees nor appreciates silly shop names as the one you have put up outside your shop.”

It adds: “So the first thing you need to do is change that stupid name from the shop’s sign board and get rid of the pictures of the pigs. Not everyone finds the name Greedy Pigs or the pictures of pigs to be pleasant and not everyone consumes pork and pig products.”

The letter, signed Regards: from the community, continues its diatribe and then advises on how the handling of food could be improved “in order to attract customers from a halal diet and vegetarian diet backgrounds”.

Miss Harper, 45, who has been open for 16 months, says she first received a similar letter a couple of months after opening and then it went quiet.

But she says she has received the second letter against a backdrop of young Asian males driving past, hurling abusive language at her and so she took the decision to report it to police in fear of something else happening.

“I feel really upset,” she said. “I’m devastated. I welcome everybody. I don’t care what religion, what colour anybody is - I get on with everybody, or try to.

“My customer base is so diverse. It’s upsetting because it’s just a name.”

Miss Harper, who named the greasy spoon after the nickname she calls her partner, added: “I don’t know whether it’s someone from outside, because we all get along. The area itself, we’ve got a little bit of everything. It really is a diverse community.”

She said: “I don’t want to single any group out or community, I don’t want to ostracise anybody or upset anybody - I just want to be able to run my business peacefully and I know it’s only a small portion of people, it’s not a whole community.

“It’s just a small section of people that have chosen to do this, but it’s hurtful and it can be quite distressing when I’m by myself. Everybody is welcome through my door and I always try to accommodate people wherever I can.”

Miss Harper is standing firm and will not be changing the name.

“I don’t see why I should. I don’t expect anybody else to change,” she said. “We all have our own beliefs and that’s fine, but your beliefs should not be put on to anyone else.

“If someone had to come in and said ‘can I speak to you about this’, I would have said ‘I didn’t mean to cause any offence’.”

A West Yorkshire Police spokesman said: “A hate incident has been recorded in relation to this matter and further enquiries are being made.”