Cabinet members at Thant council will consider a proposal to reallocate £2.8m of Margate Town Deal funding from a highways and public realm project to the refurbishment of the Theatre Royal in Margate.
In March 2021, £2.2m of Margate Town Deal’s £22.2m funding was allocated to the Theatre Royal. Since then, a new plan to create a nationally significant performing arts hub in Margate has been created, focusing on the Theatre Royal’s 245 years of history.
Thanet council says this combines heritage, performance and a move towards financial sustainability. The vision reflects the need to conserve, restore and modernise both the theatre and 19 Hawley Square.
The proposals were shared in a survey and at public and stakeholder engagement events in December 2023 which reached over 19,000 people.
Initial designs presented by Nick Lee Evans, a Specialist Conservation Architect from Lee Evans Partnership, showed an extension to the Addington Street theatre building, widened pavement, reinstated signage and a new box office entrance.
For the five floor building in Hawley Square designs show rehearsal space in the basement; on the ground floor plans show a studio theatre for 50 people, sound studio, green room, bar and coffee area; first floor plan show offices, meeting spaces and a roof garden and, on the two upper floors, accommodation for the theatre companies.
The Hawley Square venue, which was believed to have historically been The London Hotel, will also have offices and accommodation for touring theatre companies.
A projected reopening date was set for May 2027.
The Theatre Royal refurbishment project included additional funding from external sources. In February 2024, the council submitted a £4.5m funding application to the National Lottery Heritage Fund. This application was unsuccessful.
The council has also submitted a funding application for £3m to the Cultural Development Fund, which is administered by the Arts Council for the Department of Culture, Media and Sport. A decision is expected later this year.
The Cabinet report outlines other alternative funding options for the Theatre Royal project.
Thanet council says that since the funding was awarded, inflationary pressure mean the scope of some of the projects in the £22.2m Town Deal scheme must be reviewed so they can be delivered within budget.
One project, the Active Movement and Connections Intervention focuses on improving the connections between Margate’s heritage assets, town centre, coast and residential areas. A recent review highlighted significant challenges which impact the scheme.
The report proposes that £2.8m of the £5.3m funding originally allocated to the Active Movement and Connections Intervention be reallocated to the Theatre Royal.
Of the remainder; £1.15m, which is over 20%, will be used to fund public toilets in Margate (£600,000) and a new public wayfinding scheme (£200,000). A further £350,000 is proposed to be reallocated to the Coastal Wellbeing scheme to deliver improvements to public areas and landscaping at the skatepark planned for Margate.
The remaining £1.35m will be for other revised schemes and be held in contingency for other Town Deal projects being delivered by the council.
A Simplification scheme allows Thanet council to manage funding for the Margate Town Deal, Levelling Up projects and the Future High Street Fund as one £51m pot and means funding can be moved between the different projects.
Cllr Ruth Duckworth, Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Property, said: “While the council is committed to refurbishing the Margate Theatre Royal and 19 Hawley Square, we have always recognised that the project is ambitious, and would rely on securing significant funding from other sources.
“Following the introduction of the government’s Simplification Pathfinder Pilot1 in December 2023, there are opportunities to reallocate funding to the projects that will deliver the best outcomes for our communities.
“We are confident that reallocating funding will help us to achieve our ambition of bringing the Theatre Royal and 19 Hawley Square back to life, with an exciting arts venue that will bring job opportunities for local people. It will also ensure that other planned Margate Town Deal projects can be delivered.
“We understand that there may be people who will be disappointed that this funding is being reallocated, but the council is committed to supporting the projects that will have the biggest impact on creating jobs and opportunities for the future.”
In January 2024, early engagement with 16 potential Theatre Royal operators took place.
The cabinet meeting will take place on August 22.
The road to renovation
The Theatre was bought by Thanet council as ‘owner of last resort’ in 2007. The building was shut for a six month refurb programme and all staff were made redundant. It was then leased back to the Margate Theatre Royal Trust on a peppercorn rent until 2012 when the Trust went into administration.
Thanet council initially bought 19 Hawley Square from Orbit Housing in 2011 with a view to expanding the Theatre’s facilities.
In 2014 Thanet council offered a long lease or freehold interest in the theatre, and buildings at 16a and 19 Hawley Square and there was an expression of interest from Soho Theatres.
Soho Theatres developed a bid to the National Lottery Heritage Fund to deliver an improved theatre alongside community, food and beverage and hotel space at 19 Hawley Square. However, this bid fell through due to being at the end of the funding period although there was sufficient support for the idea.
Your Leisure took the site on in what was supposed to be an interim measure but had been running it up until the closure in April 2022. All staff were made redundant.
Before closure, the Theatre attracted some 36,000 ticket sales annually (including 11,000 for the pantomime) from 168 performances, generating income of £106k.
Currently the theatre has 465 seats (stalls, circle and gallery), with several small bars and WC’s around the building, and a small box office area. Back of the house hosts five dressing rooms with capacity for 29, two unisex toilets and a shower. There is no separate greenroom. The stage measures 9.3m by 6.3m, with fly space and 2.4m by 1.6m level stage access for get-in.
