Your ideas needed on arts provision in the borough

Following the enormous expression of support by the public for the town hall to be more profitably used as an Arts Centre (2,500 petition signatures and 300 at a public meeting), the Council is still uncertain about its future.

Thanks to public pressure the Council has agreed to set up a special Scrutiny Panel in May. This will have two tasks: to give further consideration to the proposal for a new Arts Centre in Ealing Town Hall; and to undertake a review of the provision of arts throughout the Borough.

Arts groups now have a chance to make an initial, and important, input into this committee. A community-based Working Group is to be organized for arts practitioners to feed in real needs, actual experiences and ideas on how to bring the arts to many more residents. This Group will then present its submission to the Scrutiny Panel in May.

The Directors of Ealing Arts Centre Ltd. see this is an important chance for the community to be heard officially and hope that groups and individuals active in the Borough will respond. Ealing Arts + Leisure,(www.ealingarts.org.uk ) the voluntary umbrella arts organization for Ealing, would like to receive comments and suggestions from the public to take to the Working Group.

Write your comments to chairman@ealingarts.org.uk or phone 020 8998 4665 (Chairman) 020 8579 4925 (Secretary)

Ealing Arts will continue its campaign for the Arts Centre. It is asking its supporters to join an Action Committee to continue its public work. It is looking for IT specialists, web designers, artists to perform at public events, secretarial helpers, fund raisers, organizers, etc for this committee. With the business plan developed and the vision for the project explained, the directors feel that it is important for the public to play a bigger part in keeping this vital issue at the forefront. Other facilities are closing down with the cuts, but this project could replace them.

The Directors stress that NO money from the Council revenue budget is requested for this project which is designed to be self-supporting. The initial seed-corn money asked for is the proceeds from the sale of a painting that are ring-fenced for the arts, and later on the “cultural” S106 (social gain) money from the developers of Dickens Yard.

Ann Pavett

Contact Ealing Arts Centre for more information at
info@ealingartscentre.org.uk and
www.gopetition.com/petition/39579.html

09 March 2011