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A new vegan bakery is to open in Plymouth 鈥� in the former bakehouse space inside the Grade I-listed Devonport Guildhall.

Former Western Morning News journalist Kate Langston and her partner, experienced baker Sam Dennis, have taken over the bakery space, in what was once a mortuary inside the historic guildhall, vacated when in August 2020.

The couple, who have relocated to Kate鈥檚 home city to start their venture, will debut their vegan wares at a pop-up event at the .

They aim to have their bakery, called after the Cornish word for estuary, in full operation in early 2021.

Heyl Bakery will be Plymouth's first 100% plant-based sourdough bakery, producing naturally leavened loaves and buns alongside a range of vegan sweet treats.

鈥淲e are passionate about sustainability and supporting the South West's amazing community of food producers, and want to source as many of our ingredients as locally as possible,鈥� said Kate.

Kate and Sam, who met as philosophy students at Durham University, have started their business under the Real Ideas Organisation鈥檚 (RIO) Start Something programme.

The social enterprise, which owns the Devonport Guildhall and nearby Market Hall and ran Column Bakehouse for seven years, started the business incubation scheme for 10 innovative new ventures in August 2020.

鈥淚'm setting up the business with my partner Sam, a trained baker who originally comes from Cumbria,鈥� said Kate, who has also worked for the Yorkshire Post. 鈥淲e have moved about a bit. Until recently we were living in London but have moved back to Plymouth to open the bakery.

鈥淲e have been talking about setting up our own bakery for a number of years, and whenever we discussed possible locations, Devon was always on the shortlist.

鈥淲e've been particularly inspired to see the number of thriving independent and vegan-friendly food businesses that have established themselves in Plymouth in recent years - it feels like the city's foodie scene has gone through a really exciting transformation.

鈥淭he events of this year have also highlighted the importance of being closer to friends and family, and as my hometown, Plymouth felt like the perfect fit for Heyl.鈥�

Sam had spent the past year working at the renowned E5 Bakehouse in London. Prior to that he spent six months studying for an advanced diploma in artisan baking at the School of Artisan Food, at Wellbeck.

Kate has been a keen homebaker for as long as she can remember, and has always dreamed of making it her profession.

She has previously been commissioned to make celebration cakes for friends and family, and with Heyl is finally making the leap into professional baking.

She said that while Plymouth already has some great sourdough bread bakeries, and vegan cake makers too, what sets Heyl apart is that it will be the first bakery to bring these two elements together.

鈥淥ur customers will be able to choose from a range of flavoursome sourdough loaves, baguettes and focaccia, as well as an exciting selection of plant-based cakes, biscuits and pastries, that will use innovative ingredients and techniques to veganise some bakery favourites,鈥� she said.

鈥淥ur product range will be a reflection of our broader commitment as a business to promote sustainable food production practices.

鈥淚n order to achieve this, we will work to reduce our reliance on plastic and minimise our waste, while taking steps to source our ingredients as responsibly and ethically as possible.鈥�

Kate said Heyl will make a range of naturally leavened, rustic artisan breads that use long fermentation to build flavour and character.

鈥淥ur signature Heyl Loaf, made using flour grown and milled in Devon, will have a caramelised crust and a light, chewy interior making it perfect for toast and sandwiches,鈥� she explained. 鈥淭his will sit alongside our focaccia, rye bread, sandwich tin loaf, baguette and a host of other breads that will rotate as specials.

鈥淎ll our breads will be made using the best stoneground flour we can get our hands on. We will work with smaller mills, using British heritage wheats that are better for soil health and ultimately far tastier than white flour made from commodity grain shipped from halfway around the world.

鈥淭his will include older varieties of wheat, which were once widely grown but have sadly fallen out of use, as well as modern crosses or 鈥榩opulation鈥� wheats that are genetically diverse and more resilient to environmental change and pests without the need for excessive chemical intervention.

鈥淥ther flours we鈥檒l be using will be milled from the earliest varieties of cultivated grain - commonly referred to as 鈥榟eritage grains鈥� - including einkorn, emmer and spelt, each of which can bring unique, complex flavours to both our bread and sweet baking.

鈥淭hese grains are typically lower in gluten and high in nutrition, making them more digestible in the experience of some people.鈥�

Kate explained that she and Sam wanted a name for the bakery that evoked a sense of place and local heritage and said: 鈥淕iven the bakery's close location to the Tamar estuary, we decided quite quickly that we wanted the name to reflect this.

鈥淲e also wanted to find a way to celebrate the South West's Celtic roots, so did a bit of research and discovered that the Cornish word for estuary is Heyl. pronounced like 'hail', which felt like the perfect fit.鈥�

The reference to the estuary also serves as a nod to Kate's father, Bill, who spent his career working as a researcher at the Marine Biological Association on Plymouth Hoe, and specialised in estuary ecosystems.

Bill sadly passed away in the summer of 2020, but was always supportive of the couple鈥檚 dream to open a bakery.

Kate said discussions are taking place with the team at RIO about selling through its cafes, as well as offering customers the ability to pre-order bread online for collection from RIO spaces, including Ocean Studios.

Heyl has and pages and Kate said: 鈥溾�淲e also hope to explore further avenues, such as local markets and deliveries.鈥�