Government denounced for Guild Hall response

The government has been accused of giving a lukewarm response to lobbying efforts to secure support for the replacement or refurbishment of Preston’s Guild Hall.

The city’s Business Improvement District (BID) says attempts to engage with Whitehall over the issue have been batted away – in a “less than encouraging” fashion – to the Arts Council agency.

It comes as the Guild Hall is placed on the Theatres at Risk Register for the first time. The 2026 edition of that list – compiled annually by the Theatres Trust advisory body – this year contains 39 venues deemed to be under threat, with Preston’s mothballed cultural heart being one of two added to the tally.

Preston City Council leader Matthew Brown says the Guild Hall’s inclusion on the register is welcome insofar as it shines a national spotlight on the attraction and its “potential for revival with the right levels of support”.

The two main theatres in the building have been closed since 2019 – initially as the result of a legal wrangle and then, once that was resolved in 2023, by the devastating discovery that the roof over the two auditoriums contained so-called ‘crumbling concrete’. The presence of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC), as it is officially known, has kept the doors closed on the combined 2,800-capacity spaces ever since.

While the 350-seater Guild Lounge launched in late 2024 in an unaffected part of the building, Preston remains without the kind of high-profile entertainment venue it had previously boasted from when the Guild Hall opened back in 1973.

In March, the city council resolved to pursue a “twin-track” approach for the following 12 months of assessing renovation costs for the existing building while also exploring whether funding could be raised for a brand new facility – cost estimates for which have been put at between £60m and £100m.

The Preston and Ribble Valley MPs, Sir Mark Hendrick and Maya Ellis, have both written to Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy appealing for support for the stricken venue.

However, Mark Whittle, manager of Preston BID, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) that a concerted push by the city to raise the issue with the government has not had the results he would have hoped.

“Partners across the city have been working hard, collaboratively, to encourage the government to understand the regional significance of the venue, and the value it brings to the city.

“Unfortunately, the response…has been less than encouraging, with them directing requests for engagement and support towards the Arts Council.

“All eyes need to be on Preston, the county’s administrative capital, to help us, as a city, find a workable, safe and futureproof solution, for a large-scale leisure, entertainment and conference facility in the city, in the very near future.

“It’s not great news that our once major cultural asset is being formally placed on an ‘at risk’ register, but the reality is, that it is,” Mr. Whittle added.

The LDRS has approached the Department for Culture, Media and Sport for comment.

Speaking separately last month, Jen Cleary, director for the North West at Arts Council England said: “Arts and culture are fundamental to thriving towns and we welcome the work Preston City Council is doing to explore the future of the Guild Hall and its cultural offer.

“As the national development agency for creativity and culture, we’ll continue to partner with the council to offer our support and advice on funding streams and strategic development, as they complete their feasibility work.”

The city council has commissioned IPW – a specialist sports, venues, entertainment and business events consultancy – to undertake that work and their report is expected later in the year.

Meanwhile, Cllr Brown said of the Guild Hall’s entry on the Theatres at Risk Register: “We welcome and value the support from the Theatres Trust. By placing the Guild Hall on the…register, it highlights the potential for revival with the right levels of support – and it also raises the awareness of the Guild Hall’s current plight at a national level.

“That helps us in our campaign to find a viable solution and funding, to secure the venue’s future and for the return of a modern, fit-for-purpose entertainment venue in the city.

“We continue to engage through the political channels available to us to lobby further for the Guild Hall and more arts funding for the city. We remain committed to finding a solution for the Guild Hall and are progressing a detailed business case with help from specialist consultants.”

Last month, cabinet member for resources Martyn Rawlinson said the city council was “not tied to the footprint of the former Guild Hall site”.

However, he added: “It does occupy an excellent central location close to public transportation hubs and it could potentially end up being more costly to build elsewhere, as the land would not be in council ownership.

“What is important, whether we decide to refurbish the existing building or build a new venue, [is] it needs to be meaningful and flexible, equipped to host a variety of events and occasions from big conferences to intimate community gatherings, and a space that reflects the modern needs of the city that we can all be proud of.”

First launched in 2006, the Theatres at Risk Register shines a spotlight on theatres under threat and helps galvanise support for securing their future. Over the past two decades, the campaign has seen more than 80 theatres restored and revived, or suitable replacements for them built.