£1m needed for arts and crafts centre

£1 million is needed to bring the historic Broad Street building up to scratch and to allow it to meet strict new criteria over disabled access and facilities.

A range of options, including closure, will go forward to Bury Council's executive committee before a decision is taken on the centre's future.

But Mary Edyvean, the chairman of the Arts and Crafts Centre's management committee, is anxious the building remains open and is upgraded.

The long-running issue came under the spotlight at the latest meeting of Bury East area board.

Des Finn, acting head of the local authority's lifelong learning, described the centre as a "key element of Bury's heritage" which catered annually for 1,700 students involved in adult and community learning. A recent development was to set up craft workshops in the basement of the building, which celebrated its centenary in 1994.

But Mr Finn explained: "There are problems with the building. There are access problems and it needs to be renovated internally.

"The £95,000 a year running costs are expensive and it will cost £1 million to bring it up to standard to meet the needs of the community."

And he feared the local authority could be "severely criticised" over the current state of the building if the Adult Learning Inspectorate undertakes an inspection of the centre.

Under the Disability Discrimination Act, buildings which offer post-16 education must be adjusted and improved to cater fully for disabled students.

"It will cost £1 million to bring about a range of modifications to the building," disclosed Mr Finn, "involving improved access and better use of available accommodation."

Among the options which will go to the executive committee are that the building continues to operate as before or is shut down and sold.

"But there is a feeling that closure is not a viable option," Mr Finn told the meeting.

However, the preferred option is to retain and enhance the Bury Arts and Crafts Centre, retain some current arts and educational provision and the cultural industries within the basement.

"We also want to attract private enterprise through a private-public partnership."

Mr Finn said if this strategy was endorsed, then vital private funding could be secured towards the £1 million required to upgrade the building.

Meanwhile, centre management committee chairman Mrs Edyvean wants an end to the uncertainty over the future of the building.

She told the meeting: "The future of the Arts and Crafts Centre has been debated to death over the last 11 years since the threat of closure."

Mrs Edyvean put forward a number of reasons why the building should be upgraded and not closed.

She cited the centre's historical significance, the fact it was within a conservation area and part of the culture quarter, and that it catered for 1,700 students.