Willowfield School to be Performing Arts & Film Centre?

Willowfield School have applied for £182,000 LAA funding “to create a hub within the school to develop a dual use performing arts and film centre for use by the school and wider community“.

Details on the Performing Arts & Film Centre proposals (PDF)

The school plans to open in September 2011 on the old goods yard and industrial area between Blackhorse Road Station, Hawarden Road and the Douglas Eyre Playing Fields.

Although the proposal was recommended for funding, the council panel criticised the plans saying “the original application did not fully address how the wider community, rather than only the school itself, would benefit from this investment. Supplementary information sought by the panel and provided by the sponsoring organisation demonstrated that this issue will be addressed“.

Here’s an excerpt from the funding request:

“A dual use performance and screening space would have extensive use by Willowfield school. It is not expected that community arts use would be high immediately, but it would grow over time with the new facility providing a
stimulus for growth in the performing arts and film making community. At current community arts levels you may be talking about between 10 and 30 productions annually. It is expected that with a venue located near public transport that other schools and colleges would use the venue and for the community arts use to grow, but it is difficult to provide a forecast.

Cultural services also advise that there is a growing creative industry sector developing within the borough especially in the Blackhorse Lane area which would complement a performing arts and film centre at Willowfield School”.