In October 2009, the Malvern Hills Conservators announced plans to take St Ann's Well cafe back under their own management on expiry of the tenancy on 31 March 2010 to achieve a long-standing goal of providing a visitor information centre. Although Malvern Town Council voted in favour of supporting the action taken by the Conservators the announcement was met with opposition from local residents and visitors to the area and a public meeting was called by the Malvern Hills Conservators to address the concerns of the public on 12 November 2009. Thirty-six members of the public attended the meeting and asked a total of 26 questions regarding plans for St Ann's Well. At a meeting of Malvern Hills Conservators on 11 March 2010, supporters of the proprietor of St Ann's Well asked a further 29 questions, some of them concerning the plans for the cafe and others about other aspects of the Conservators work and in May 2010 a petition asking the Conservators to reconsider their decision was presented to the Board of Conservators. It was signed by 4,500 people, including the actor Martin Shaw, poet Benjamin Zephaniah and Mary McCartney.