Christmas event marks “superb” first year for Worthing’s creative hub

Worthing’s thriving creative hub continues to go from strength to strength - with new figures showing thousands of people have used the space in the first year of opening.

Sited at the end of Warwick Street, Colonnade House was established after Worthing Borough Council made a successful application to the Coastal Communities Fund for £245,000 to refurbish the building.

Since then, the refurbished galleries and three floors of studio space have been used to support those working in the creative industries - from animators to illustrators, photographers to painters - to provide a showcase for the work of local artists.

To mark the first year, Colonnade House is holding a late-night shopping event on December 14 until 8pm as part of a two-week seasonal Pop-Up Shop, where a host of delights from local artists and designers will be on display to buy.

Councillor Heather Mercer, Worthing Borough Council’s Executive Member for Customer Services, said: “I’m delighted to see the progress that has been made in what has been a superb first year for Colonnade House.

“The popularity of this resource shows that there is real demand for studio and gallery space for dozens of talented locals to display their creative talents.

“It shows that Worthing is a town that’s truly on the up when it comes to the creative industries. I sincerely believe it will only go from strength to strength.”

Colonnade House officially opened as a creative hub in September 2016.

It has been leased to Adur & Worthing Trust, a local charity that supports arts and culture and is managed through a partnership between the Trust and the Council with a team of three members of staff.

One year on, the ten studio spaces are running at around 80% occupancy and are let to people working across the creative industries.

Other headlines from the first year include:

·        Gallery space rented out to 33 different artists and organisations;

·        More than 1,000 visitors a month to the gallery space;

·        Nearly 200 people attend 16 professional development events aimed at the local creative community;

·        Arts Council England backing for a digital installation project Geminate II which ran in March this year attracting large audiences physically and online and gaining TV coverage from BBC South.