The Stage

Jacksons Lane Arts Centre saved in Arts Council England U-turn

Published Friday 13 February 2009 at 17:10 by Lalayn Baluch

Jacksons Lane Arts Centre in north London has been granted an 11th hour reprieve after Arts Council England overturned a proposal to cut the venue’s £135,700 annual funding from April.

At a crunch meeting, ACE’s London committee agreed to subsidise the Highgate centre for another year, despite having “serious” concerns over its financial viability and physical condition.

The U-turn came after Haringey Council pledged to double its investment in the arts centre to £110,000 on top of subsidised rent worth £60,000.

Jacksons Lane chief executive Kate Sarley said: “We couldn’t have done this without the support of Haringey Council, as well as local people.

“I am sure that it was this partnership and commitment to a fruitful relationship between Jacksons Lane and Haringey which gave the arts council the confidence to review their decision, and all Haringey residents can be proud of that fact.”

This is the second time the future of Jacksons Lane has been under threat. Last February, ACE warned it had concerns about the Grade-II listed building - which was closed for a year in 2007 when a storm caused damage to the roof - but it was given a year to come up with a plan of action.

Jacksons Lane commissioned a feasibility study of the site, which showed that £2 million was needed for core maintenance and refurbishment.

An ACE spokesperson said that the funding was based on the condition that Haringey Council and Jacksons Lane work together to develop a realistic refurbishment scheme for the building, and that the situation would be reviewed in early 2010.

ACE London executive director Moira Sinclair said: “This was a very welcome last minute offer by Haringey, without which we would not have been able to continue our commitment to Jacksons Lane.

“We retain serious concerns about the financial viability of Jacksons Lane and the physical condition of the building, and will be working closely with Haringey over the next ten months to ensure that these are addressed.”

The news was welcomed by Matt Cooke, Haringey cabinet member for community cohesion and involvement, who added: “We have consistently supported Jacksons Lane over many years and remain totally committed to this precious centre for the arts.”

Sanjeev Bhaskar, David Morrissey, Jonathan Pryce, Alison Steadman, Juliet Stevenson and Meera Syal were among the list of names who signed a letter in support of the arts centre earlier this week.