Regeneration
Walsall’s Guildhall building will encourage and support creative businesses from the Black Country and beyond under development plans
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Walsall Council is working in partnership with Urban Hax, a local non-profit creative Community Interest Company, to draw up plans for what promises to be a vibrant hive of creativity in the centre of Walsall.
The Guildhall is an historical Grade 2 * listed building in Walsall Town Centre, located at the top of the High Street, next to the Black Country Arms.
Recent photos show what the inside now looks like, having been stripped out, ready for the next stage of development, with full construction due to start in Spring 2024.
Walsall Council is working in partnership with Urban Hax, a local non-profit creative Community Interest Company, to draw up plans for a café, gallery space, conference facilities and areas for suitable machinery that will be available for use by local makers and creative industries.
Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands, recently visited the Guildhall for a tour of the building and an update on how the plans are progressing.
“ This project is a great example of how we can diversify town centre buildings away from retail offerings, to provide facilities that will help local people access resources to build creative businesses. Walsall is a real hub of creativity and I’m excited to see what opportunities the new Creative Industries Enterprise Centre will create “
“ The new creative industries enterprise centre will offer substantial floorspace for a wide variety of creative businesses and makers, from leather workers and woodworkers to fashion designers and digital artists. We will be able to invest in more equipment and machinery to help support local creatives to grow their businesses and I hope that the central location of the Guildhall will attract more and more people to explore their creativity “
Earlier in 2023, Walsall Council successfully secured £3.7million by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, delivered by Arts Council England, to transform the Grade II listed building into a vibrant Creative Industries Enterprise Centre.
The vacant building, which was last in use as an Italian restaurant, has now been stripped internally and plans are in progress to determine the layout for what will be a hive of creativity. Urban Hax is a Black Country based makerspace, established in Walsall in 2014, and has built its reputation as being a great place to practice and exploit creativity in all its forms.
The plans for the makerspace aim to help creative businesses grow and thrive in Walsall, to boost the economy and to nurture the creative industry.
ENDS
