A cake club that meets at secret locations throughout Wharfedale is not just about the tasty treats, it is also a place for people of all walks of life to get together and make new friends.

The Wharfedale Clandestine Cake Club meets once a month, and invites members to bake a cake and bring it along to the latest meeting, each of which has a specific theme.

But to prevent “cake-crashers” – non-members who come just for the cake – the venue is only revealed to members a few days before the event.

Clandestine Cake Clubs first started springing up in Leeds in 2010, and have since become an increasingly popular underground movement. The Wharfedale branch has been going for about a year, while there are similar groups in Keighley and Saltaire. The idea has even spread as far as Bangalore and the USA.

The groups all have one thing in common – they all bring together people from all walks of life who share a love for cake.

The local branch had their latest meeting on Thursday, Yorkshire Day, and members were invited to bake a cake with some link to the county.

Held at Create Cafe in Ilkley, members also got to make their own pottery after the tea and cakes.

Yorkshire inspired cakes included rhubarb cakes, a Leeds United cake and a Yorkshire Tea-inspired cake.

Kathryn Garnett, 28, from Burley in Wharfedale, runs the club along with Clare Conlon, believes the group offers members a unique change to meet people of all ages and professions. She said: “Each month we pick a venue and give a clue of where it is to members through our website. They let us know if they can make it, and then we e-mail them with the location a few days before. That way we make sure we only get members coming, and not any cakecrashers.

“We get a wide variety of people turning up, from people in their 20s to others in their 60s.

“It really brings people together, they meet up and have a chin wag. It is a great way for people to meet, and it is all in a non-competitive environment. All the events we’ve had so far have been great.”

There are around 46 members of the club, with up to a dozen attending each meeting.

The group uses the meetings to help support local businesses, and many of their gatherings are in local cafes. But they also meet in more unusual locations – one event was held on a barge, and members hope to hold a future meeting in a yurt.

Across the UK and Ireland there are about 80 Clandestine Cake Clubs and many more abroad. The group is always looking for new members, or venues to hold meetings. Go to clandestinecakeclub.co.uk/groups/wharfedale to sign up.

What do you think the idea of a Clandestine Cake Club? Let us know by e-mailing george.hinton @gazetteandobserver.co.uk