Café INDIEpendent is a coffee and music house – but, underpinning that, we are an employability project for disadvantaged young people.
So, by day we’re like any other High Street coffee house, except we’ve got morals.
By night we’re an arts venue. We’re passionate about music and often work in conjunction with other promoters to draw in a range of national an international acts – whilst continuing to support the growth of Scunthorpe’s own music scene. We pride ourselves on the diverse and eclectic mix of artists and genres we’re able to host.
Highlights since we opened include Sleaford Mods, Slaves, Viv Albertine, While She Sleeps, The King Blues, Miles Hunt, The Beat, Martin Stephenson & The Daintees, Inspiral Carpets, Mark Morriss (The Bluetones), John Bramwell (I Am Kloot), Rachel Sermanni, Slow Readers Club, Funeral For a Friend, Reeves Gabrels (Bowie), Blossoms, Cabbage, Cambodian Space Project and many many more…
We host a variety of other events, including art exhibitions and installations, fayres and fetes, comedy, spoken word, theatre, pop-up suppers and film screenings. Please check the Events section to see what’s coming up.
We are also a multi-level function space, available to hire. We’ve hosted wedding receptions, birthday parties and baby showers. There is an art exhibition space on the top floor, which is above the Cafe’s tri-level area, and is available to hire for a variety of creative purposes. Please see the Hire Out Indie section on the front page for more information, if you are interested in hiring us out for your own function or event.
Café INDIEpendent is also a Co-Operative. This means the organisation is NOT-FOR-PROFIT. Every penny you spend here gets re-invested in your community on wonderful things. Beyond that it means we are run by and for our members. For more information on membership – the perks and how you can be part of our community please check the Co-Op section on the front page.
Most of the people you’ll encounter working in the Café are young volunteers gaining experience, access to training and youth work support – or just looking to belong to one big community. What we’ve found is that because the people working here are here through their own choice, they’re happy to be here and that helps create the welcoming, quirky environment of the Café. So your drink may take slightly longer to arrive – but the person serving you is going to be friendly and they’re here to learn. Be kind to them please!
Please note: Because of the above, we don’t always get everything absolutely perfect. Our volunteers are here to learn – and they thrive on your feedback. So if there’s ever any issue please do speak up. We do listen, and we’re always happy to correct mistakes. Your input can prove to be a great learning tool for our young people.