The redevelopment of Porthcawl’s much-loved theatre, the Grand Pavilion is moving a step closer, with residents invited to have a final say on the proposed plans before they are submitted to the local authority for formal planning.
Bridgend County Borough Council and its partners at Awen Cultural Trust were awarded £18m Levelling Up Funding from the UK Government, following a successful application by the council working in close partnership with Awen Cultural Trust.
The redevelopment of the Grand Pavilion represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity for to safeguard this iconic building for many years to come and ensure it retains its position as a flagship regional arts and cultural venue of choice.
The pre-application consultation is an integral part of the work and, during the design development of the project, a broad schedule of engagement with statutory and non-statutory bodies, specialist advisors, community groups and the public has been undertaken to create a scheme informed by wide-ranging feedback.
The most recent engagement was held with the community between the 3 and 16 July 2023, receiving a significant response, demonstrating the architectural and social value of the building. Those sessions and surveys captured important feedback and presented positive, constructive, and concerned views for consideration and incorporation into the final plans.
Since the conclusion of these events, the feedback has been reviewed and responded to, with amends made to the scheme in key areas, to mitigate concerns and incorporate recommendations that add further value.
The statutory pre-application consultation period is an opportunity to present the amended scheme back to the community, stakeholders, and consultees, including access to the full suite of draft planning application information.
Councillor Rhys Goode, Cabinet Member for Housing, Planning and Regeneration, said: “The final plans for the Grand Pavilion are almost complete. We have done our utmost to ensure that as many public views as possible have been considered and incorporated into these designs. We know how much this building means to both local people and visitors, and that is why we have encouraged your feedback in every step of this process.
“Please take the time to look at the proposals and the plans and share your comments and views. We want to work with the community to help shape an arts and cultural venue suitable for all generations, which will offer multiple benefits for many years to come.”
Richard Hughes, Chief Executive, Awen Cultural Trust, said: “We are grateful to the local residents and organisations who participated in our public engagement sessions in July. The comments and feedback we received were extremely helpful and allowed our appointed architects, Purcell, to make some changes to the previous designs. We hope the Porthcawl community, and the users of the Grand Pavilion will take time to review these updated plans and have their say in the future of their local theatre.”
The final proposals can be viewed online at Awen’s website, where you can inspect copies of the proposed application, plans, and supporting documents.
Feedback must be received by the planning process deadline of Tuesday 31 October 2023.
