We are excited to announce that construction work has begun to regenerate the Town Hall on St Mary’s and make the dream of the islands’ new Cultural Centre and Museum come true. Stepnell, the company undertaking the building work, has recently broken ground on the development, in accordance with the timeline which will see the project completed in the summer of 2026.
This pivotal moment was celebrated yesterday (17 October 2024) by an on-site ceremony which was attended by Councillors Robert Francis, Tim Dean, Fran Grottick and Steve Sims and representatives from the project’s funding bodies, as well as trustees of Scilly Arts & Heritage, the newly established not-for-profit charitable business which will be taking over responsibility for the facility from the Council upon the completion of the construction and fit-out.
After months of preparatory work, Stepnell can now begin the task of restoring the Town Hall building and adding the extensions which were designed by a team of specialists under the leadership of award-winning architects Purcell. The redeveloped building will be fully accessible and will provide a welcoming space for live performances, theatre, community events, a new home for the Isles of Scilly Museum and a new café with panoramic views over Porthcressa beach. You can view the latest plans for the building on the Isles of Scilly Cultural Centre and Museum website.
The £15 million project has been made possible with support from UK Government, The National Lottery Heritage Fund, Good Growth Shared Prosperity Fund, Arts Council England and Cornwall Council in addition to the contribution made by the Council of the Isles of Scilly.
Cllr Robert Francis, Chairman of the Council of the Isles of Scilly said: “This is such an exciting moment for our islands as we begin to see the promise of the new facility become a reality. Many of us have fond memories of joining together in the Town Hall when it was a treasured space for meeting with friends and celebrating important occasions together and I cannot wait to see the building revived, repurposed and back where it belongs at the heart of the community.”
Ann Tudor, Scilly Arts & Heritage said: "This is a hugely exciting, once in a generation opportunity to breathe new life into a much-loved landmark in the heart of Hugh Town. These plans will create a unique facility, museum and cultural centre, which will benefit residents and visitors alike for many years to come."
Richard Bellamy, Head of Engagement - London & South at The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said: “One of the things that stood out for us with the Isles of Scilly Cultural Centre and Museum was the huge impact this project will have on the community and people of the Isles of Scilly. It will create a space where Scillonians can celebrate and share their unique heritage, as well as providing a much-needed community and cultural gathering hub. We know that heritage is a great way of bringing people together and creating a sense of pride of place, that in turn can deliver wider economic benefits.”
Nema Hart, South West Director and Inclusive Innovation, Arts Council England, adds: This is an exciting and significant moment for the Isles of Scilly. We are delighted to see plans lift off at the Town Hall and can’t wait to see residents and visitors engage with what promises to be an intrinsic part of cultural life on Scilly. Thanks to public funding, partners have collaborated on an ambitious vision, sure to bring benefits to the community now and for future generations. Because everyone, everywhere, deserves access to high quality art and culture.
Cllr Louis Gardner, Cornwall Council portfolio holder for economy, said: “We’ve invested over £3.4m of Good Growth funding for this exciting project, which is set to strengthen the local economy, create an enduring legacy for the islands, and celebrate their unique culture and heritage. It’s exciting to see work underway and we look forward to watching it take shape and become an intrinsic part of life on Scilly,”
The Isles of Scilly Cultural Centre and Museum has received £3,4000,000 from the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. Cornwall Council has been chosen by Government as a Lead Authority for the fund and is responsible for monitoring the progress of projects funded through the UK
Shared Prosperity Fund in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly through the Good Growth programme.
Photo of attendees at the ceremony outside the Town Hall on St Mary's. Credit: MaisieKate@Traceless
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About Isles of Scilly Town Hall Cultural Centre and Museum
The much-loved Grade II listed Town Hall in Hugh Town, St Mary’s, has always been a place for the community to gather and to welcome visitors.
Now - led by the Council of the Isles of Scilly working in partnership with the new Trustees and Isles of Scilly Museum - there are plans to rejuvenate that legacy by creating an attractive, year-round flexible venue. It will act as a new home to the museum, provide a welcoming indoor performance space for live music and theatre and act as an essential community hall.
This project is led by the Council of the Isles of Scilly, working in partnership with Scilly Arts & Heritage and the Isles of Scilly Museum Association. Our funders included Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Good Growth Shared Prosperity Fund, Arts Council England, UK Government and The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
About The National Lottery Heritage Fund
As the largest dedicated funder of the UK’s heritage, The National Lottery Heritage Fund’s vision is for heritage to be valued, cared for and sustained for everyone, now and in the future as set out in our strategic plan, Heritage 2033.
Over the next ten years, the Heritage Fund aims to invest £3.6billion raised for good causes by National Lottery players to bring about benefits for people, places and the natural environment.
The Heritage Fund helps protect, transform and share the things from the past that people care about, from popular museums and historic places, our natural environment and fragile species, to the languages and cultural traditions that celebrate who we are.
The Heritage Fund is passionate about heritage and committed to driving innovation and collaboration to make a positive difference to people’s lives today, while leaving a lasting legacy for future generations to enjoy.
Follow @HeritageFundUK on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and use #NationalLotteryHeritageFund www.heritagefund.org.uk.
About Shared Prosperity Fund
The UK Shared Prosperity Fund aims to improve pride in place and increase life chances across the UK investing in communities and place, supporting local business, and people and skills. For more information, visit https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-shared-prosperity-fund-prospectus
About Arts Council England
Arts Council England is the national development agency for creativity and culture. We have set out our strategic vision in Let’s Create that by 2030 we want England to be a country in which the creativity of each of us is valued and given the chance to flourish and where every one of us has access to a remarkable range of high-quality cultural experiences. From 2023 to 2026 we will invest over £467 million in public money from Government and an estimated £250 million from The National Lottery each year to help support the sector and to deliver this vision. This year the National Lottery will celebrate 30 years of supporting good causes in the United Kingdom through raising £49 billion and awarding over 690,000 individual grants since the first draw was held in 1994. Visit our website to learn more.
Follow @ace_southwest on Twitter/X and @aceagrams on Instagram, using #LetsCreate and #ACEsupported.
Media Enquiries
Ann Tudor and Cllr Tim Dean are available for interview.
All requests to be directed to:
communications@scilly.gov.uk
