There has been an "overwhelming" response from the local community which has come together to raise nearly £8,000 to help rebuild the outdoor area at Henley-in-Arden Railway Station after an arson attack last week.

Firefighters were called to the station in the early hours of the morning on Thursday 26 June where a fire had destroyed the majority of the "cherished" outdoor area.

The seating pods on site have been completely destroyed, with volunteers working quickly over the past few days to make the site safe and clear away all the debris after the fire.

All the seating pods were destroyed by the fire (image by Nub News)

And with no insurance covering the site, a fundraiser has already brought in some £7,900 to pay for the area to be refurbished.

Locals have also been dropping off garden furniture to the site, so it can still be used.

Thanks to the quick response of the emergency services, The Brookie Bean coffee trailer on site escaped mostly unscathed.

The debris has been cleared from the patio area (image by Nub News)

Owner Jenny told Nub News: "It was about a minute away from that [the trailer] setting fire inside. 

"I had a living wall at the bottom which caught fire, and it is all burnt on the outside. 

"We have some singed cups and stuff like that, so it was really close, but thankfully that stayed intact. 

"Funnily enough I have a book swap which I do which was completely unscathed, and the plant swap a couple of them died but that was it."

The Brookie Bean trailer was close to being destroyed by the fire (image by Nub News)

Over the past few days what was left of the pods was removed and the patio area cleared, while diggers have also been on site today (June 30) completing some earthworks.

The Station reopened on Thursday afternoon with The Brookie Bean reopening on Friday. And over the weekend many locals came down to enjoy the sunshine at the community bar which was opened by Friends of Henley Station last February.

"Wow what a community we have in Henley," the group said in a post on social media last week.

Locals have been donating furniture to the community area (image by Nub News)

The station was busy over the weekend with locals rallying around the community space (image by Nub News)

"Firstly we cannot thank our local Alcester & Stratford fire brigade enough... who if they hadn't turned up so quickly the outcome would have been very different.   

"How lucky are we to have secured a full time fire service in Henley.

"Special thank you to Gallons & Mark and his lads from R. Adams & Sons who have gone above and beyond today [Thursday] to take down the damaged structure and clear all our debris so we can continue to stay open for business.

The view of the terrace before the blaze (image by Nub News)

"Also Henley Forest Football lads who finished work early to help us with the clear up."

"In addition we are overwhelmed by the support on our Just Giving Page."

Nub News has approached British Transport Police for more information.

The current view of the site (image by Nub News)

Plans to renovate the area are already in the works (image by Nub News)