Big boost to Selsey Pavilion Trust

The grant is a significant step forward on the road to restoring the former theatre and cinema in the heart of Selsey High Street. It will enable fundraising support and further development of the Trusts’ plans, building on the successes of last year’s project viability study.

In recent years, dozens of historic buildings have been successfully adapted into economically sustainable entertainment hubs for the 2020s and beyond. With the vision and determination of the very committed Trustees, this is precisely what’s in store for Selsey!

SPT chairman Christian Skelton stresses the significance of this latest AHF grant for the long-term aspirations of the Trust and the benefits the Pavilion can bring to Selsey:

“The AHF has been instrumental in saving hundreds of community projects like ours from the brink. To receive their continued support demonstrates the incredible potential that a restored Selsey Pavilion can bring to the community and our High Street. A considerable amount of fundraising will be required, but this is the start of the Selsey Pavilion revival.

Having a vibrant entertainment venue in the heart of Selsey can only bring positive benefits to the town. It will encourage locals and tourists back into the High Street during the day and extend business hours in the evenings while cutting car journeys on the B2145 to Chichester.

And how many towns can boast a hundred-year-old art deco theatre on their doorstep? Once restored, the Pavilion will be one of only a handful of pre-Great War cinemas still in cultural use throughout the UK.”

Gavin Richards, Programme Manager, Architectural Heritage Fund, added: 

“The Selsey Pavilion is exactly the sort of project that the Architectural Heritage Fund’s Transforming Places through Heritage programme was designed to support. We have been impressed with the work Selsey Pavilion Trust has done with the help of our project viability grant, and this second grant award will enable the Trust to develop its exciting plans for the building. We hope this will lead to a successful bid to the Community Ownership Fund. Bringing this wonderful old building back into use and community ownership will have a hugely positive impact on Selsey’s High Street.”

The next step for the Trust is to apply for the Government’s Community Ownership Fund (COF) at the end of this year following a successful pre-application in June. The COF will support 50% of the purchase price of the Pavilion if successful giving the Trust a fantastic opportunity to purchase the Pavilion.