Restored Church Street building ready for business

The building was originally in ecclesiastical ownership as part of a two-storey house associated with the nearby All Hallows church in the town centre, but is now owned by the council. It is part of a small terrace of Grade II listed buildings, and it was used in the earlier part of the 20th century as a fire station, but had latterly been used for general storage before becoming vacant and somewhat dilapidated by 2000. The council thought it was vital it was brought back to life - with a new, commercially viable use - to ensure its survival.

The design for the building was two fold - the element facing Church Street was carefully restored and refurbished, and the rear was extended in a contemporary style. It sensitively joins the old and the new, and customers of the new café will have the option of enjoying the views over the church from the first floor full height windows, cozying up in the basement snug at the front of the building, or braving the elements on the contemporary decking area at the back.

The man behind Bewiched, Matt Fountain, 35, worked in catering for more than nine years before being made redundant a year ago. He had been thinking about opening an upmarket coffee shop for a while, but it wasn't until his redundancy that he was able to take the plunge. Matt says: "I thought there was a definite gap in the market. Wellingborough has a real need for an independent café like this - most coffee shops are great at coffee but only serve tea as an afterthought. For a tea-drinking nation like ours, I thought this was missing a trick! Our coffee is considered to be the best you can get, our baristas will be specially trained and checked every month, but we will have the same standards for our teas as well, using speciality loose leaf tea and unique tea pots to get a perfect brew every time."

Matt goes on to explain what made the Church Street building perfect for his business: "I saw the lease online at the beginning of the year and knew it had potential, so I was more than prepared to wait for the council to finish the renovations. I'm over the moon with how it's turned out. I'm confident that there won't be a café in this calibre of building anywhere in Northamptonshire. It's part of the council's 2020 Vision for the town and I think we fit in perfectly with those ambitions. The site and the building are pivotal to the success of Bewiched, but I'm determined that it will be a combination of everything - this beautiful and unique building, excellent service, top quality food and drink - that will attract people not only from Wellingborough but also outside. I want to make Wellingborough proud."

Councillor Graham Lawman, Chairman of the council's development committee said: "We are working hard to regenerate the town centre, and Bewiched is an important part of that. We were keen that the building would be used as an eatery and provide something new for people. The authentic restoration of the front of the building and the sympathetic addition of the exciting new area at the back combined with its proximity to the bus interchange and view over of the church make this a unique and very special place. I'm very much looking forward to the opening of Bewiched and I'm sure a lot of other people are too."

Bewiched will be officially opened by the Mayor of Wellingborough, Councillor Lora Lawman, on Monday 25 October. The Mayor said: "I'm delighted to open the cafe and wish the management much success for the future. The re-development of the building is a classic example that we can successfully and tastefully bridge a historic building with a 'new' annex. I would like to extend my thanks to the architects for the consideration shown for this important historic part of Wellingborough."