Blyth cafe owner who had to relocate fears there will be 'nothing left' in the town centre

Maxine Carr’s venue Cafe Central used to face on to Market Place in Blyth until it closed last month. She reopened the cafe, now with capacity for sitting in, at a new location on Broadway Circle this week.

She had been told to leave her original location after Northumberland County Council purchased the building and was “gutted” when she learned she would have to move.

She said: “I have had that little cafe for eight years. It is more of a community cafe and I get the elderly in.

“One customer even cried on the last day when we closed. We are the only people that some of the elderly spoke to. They came out just to us for a natter.

“There are a few that will use their bus pass to get up here but there are quite a few who cannot get up here. The customers are really sad and I am too, but it is the only choice I had.”

According to Maxine, the council had reduced her rent by half when hoardings went up on Market Place and has covered relocation and fit out costs for her new shop, but otherwise she has had no compensation.

She hopes “this business is going to be better” but said the moving process and opening a new cafe has been “very stressful” and that she had “been in tears” when the council first told her she would eventually have to move.

The local authority purchased Keel Row Shopping Centre last year as it was on the verge of closing, and extended its life until February 2024, at which point it closed ahead of demolition to be replaced with higher education facilities.

Market Place is also being renovated and a culture hub featuring a cinema is being built in the town centre too, all as part of the £90m Energising Blyth programme funded by the government, the council, and North of Tyne Combined Authority.

However, Maxine believes the work is hurting town centre businesses. She said: “The customers did decline with all the boards and everything going up and Keel Row closing. My sales went down.

“There are no people, no footfall, going into Blyth now like there used to be.

“To be honest, maybe another couple of weeks down the line I would have had to close anyway.”

The 58-year-old added: “I think that the council should think more about small businesses. They are closing small businesses down and there is going to be nothing left in Blyth.”

A Northumberland County Council spokesperson said: “The town centre remains open and accessible throughout the works and we encourage everyone to keep supporting the town’s traders as improvements are made.

“As well as one to one visits with businesses in the town, along with regular updates and newsletters, we have worked hard to support all traders directly impacted by the closure of the Keel Row Shopping Centre.

“While we would have liked all affected traders to stay within the town centre, this business made the choice to relocate elsewhere in the town and we have provided a comprehensive support package to help them with this.”