Thanet council says ‘another significant milestone’ has been reached for the reopening of Margate Winter Gardens with the signing of the ‘agreement for lease’ with operator Westwood One Theatre.
Westwood One – also operator of the Granville Theatre in Ramsgate and Under 1 Roof nurseries – has a 999-year lease agreement to take on the Fort Crescent building and receives a £4 million grant towards the renovation from Margate’s £22m Town Deal fund. Westwood One will match fund to create an £8m budget.
The Grade II listed venue has been shut since August 2022 after Your Leisure Kent, which ran it on behalf of TDC, handed the lease to the council due to “a significant backlog of repairs and essential refurbishments.”
The then-Conservative council chose to close the venue due to the costs of the works.
Westwood One Theatre – run by Ramsgate sisters Zahra and Parisa Tarjomani and Pyramid Martial Arts & Just Kids Parties owner Matt Milchard – was chosen as the preferred operator in March 2025.
The redevelopment will introduce a mix of complementary uses to ensure year-round activity and long-term sustainability.
. Key aspects of the refurbishment, outlined in the RIBA Stage 2 proposals, include:
- Two main concert/theatre/event spaces: the Main Hall and Queen’s Hall.
- A rooftop bar/restaurant and daytime café with panoramic views.
- Four additional bars.
- A 100-place accredited drama school.
- A further education/vocational learning centre accredited by NCFE.
- A 100-place Ofsted-registered day nursery.
An application for listed building consent for internal investigative works at the venue is due to be discussed by councillors next week.
The works will help to inform the design of future full and listed building application proposals for the building.
The formal signing of contracts also means the first part of the £4m Regeneration Fund (formerly Town Deal) grant will be released.
This will be for the amount of £400,000 to fund key preparatory work (consultant fees, initial planning, surveys, demolition). A further £200,000 will be released on submission of valid planning and listed building applications to fund detailed RIBA 4 technical design, building control, procurement, preliminaries and start on site.
It is expected that work could start on the venue this summer with parts of the building opening in 2027.
Matt Milchard said: “We are so thrilled and have been working so hard behind the scenes to get to this monumental day.
“We are committed to keeping entertainment thriving in Thanet and we are so excited to begin works.”
Councillor Ruth Duckworth, Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Property at Thanet District Council, said: “We’re delighted to announce that an ‘agreement for lease’ has now been signed between Thanet District Council and Westwood One Theatre.
“This is another significant milestone for the regeneration of the iconic Margate Winter Gardens and formalises the contractual relationship with our confirmed partner, Westwood One Theatre.
“The first stage grant agreement is also now in place and accordingly we’ve released the first part of the £4 million funding to Westwood One Theatre.
“Westwood One Theatre is now working on the planning and listed building applications which are anticipated to be submitted later this week.”
Main Hall
The proposals for the Main Hall focus on reinstating its use as an entertainment and performance space, reflecting its historic function. Where possible, views towards the sea will be reopened to strengthen the hall’s original relationship with its coastal setting.
The existing decorative features will be retained and conserved through a low-impact restoration approach, preserving the significance of the space.
Internal layout adjustments will improve capacity and functionality, with the introduction of bar facilities to support event use. The two existing balcony areas will be retained and adapted to provide additional viewing and hospitality space, making use of their architectural character without compromising the historic fabric. The aim is to open the Main Hall by early 2027 with other areas following in phases.
Drama School & Queen’s Hall
The Queen’s Hall will be refurbished as a flexible space for both performances and education. It will provide a more intimate event venue, complementing the Main Hall, while also supporting the drama school by allowing students to rehearse and perform in a professional setting.
The hall will work alongside dedicated classroom and dance studio spaces elsewhere in the building.
Refurbishment will retain the character of the space and allow for both seated and standing events, with improved bar facilities introduced to support its use.
Rooftop restaurant
A new rooftop restaurant is proposed above the Main Hall, making use of the site’s panoramic sea views.
The restaurant will include an indoor dining area and an outdoor terrace, with canopies providing shade during the summer months.
The team say the design of the extension will be modest and respectful of the existing building.
Operating hours will be separate to performance times and improved access from the upper promenade will strengthen the connection between the Winter Gardens and the seafront.
Nursery
A new nursery is proposed to introduce a secure, day-to-day use at the upper part of the Winter Gardens site, close to the steps from Fort Crescent.
The facility will provide a 100-place private nursery. Small extensions on either side of the existing building will retain the symmetry of the site. The nursery will operate as a self-contained and secure facility.
The project also includes a new entrance, ramped outdoor access, VIP booths and more outside use of the gardens and seafront area.
I am so looking forward to seeing the finished project. My only concern is the lack of parking in the area 🤔
There is a car park within a few hundred yards of WG,.The limes surgery which is run by TDC
There’s also limited free parking round the back. My biggest issue (and it was the same even in the ’90s) is the lack of buses and trains back to Birchington – just 3 miles away! – after 10:30pm.
Looks amazing.
People from Thanet will moan about it because you love moaning about things being improved in Thanet especially Margate.
Glad the buses don’t run late Pete! Keeps haters like you away!
To be correct , the drawings look “amazing” perhaps we should reserve judgement until the final physical result is revealed.
Why don’t you cycle Peter given you are such an avid cycler, or so you say
There may be trouble ahead!
https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/12523533/charges
Clare – I assume by your post you have very little knowledge of business practices- give these new owners/operators some consideration that they are business people and you are not!
SDKA LTD is not a bank. It has been very successful in the last decade.
But, the economic climate is causing investors to back out of this unregulated form of borrowing where interest rates can rise exponentially.
With the risk of a global recession and the increasing number of borrowers not able to pay their bridging loans back, which of course are secured against, in this instance, the Granville Theatre, and I assume the Winter Gardens would be match funded similarly, there may be trouble ahead.
Already Matt Milchard has unfortunately featured in the London Gazette. I hope their enterprise pays off and that the Winter Gardens is successfully redeveloped. I wish that the cost-cutting at the Granville Theatre hadn’t made this development fail to meet the original planning permissions and is currently having its retrospective planning permission examined by TDC.
It took approximately 6 months for the Westwood One Theatre Ltd to even submit a valid application and the current drawings are based on mismeasurements by both the original architect and their local building control ‘expert’.
I would hope that the day to day use, I.e the community would be a major consideration. The restaurant could maybe be a training place for local youngsters front and back of house. Get the place working day and night.
Why has the contemparary given such substantial funding,when it is very clear the winter gardens needs it.
I hope Jim Davidson is at the grand reopening.
If he can stop waving flags, drink driving, whining about Lenny Henry & beating up woman maybe he can make it.
Brilliant news and sure it will be a huge success – good luck and best wishes to everyone involved