Confusion Reigns Over Future of the Watermans

Venue shut without warning with no set plan for replacement

Watermans Arts Centre. Picture: Watermans

April 5, 2024

The dust has yet to settle after the shock announcement that the Watermans Arts Centre was to close next Thursday (11 April) but recriminations are already starting to fly about where responsibility lies.

A fractious public meeting on Thursday 28 March saw many in attendance accuse the council of being responsible and failing to consult properly with residents about what was ahead. Others criticised the management of the centre saying it had become over dependent on grant funding to stage niche performances and neglected to host more popular productions and events which would have given it a more stable revenue.

Members, staff and tenants of the centre were given just three weeks’ notice of the closure and some have questioned the haste with which the decision has been made.

The matter looks set to become a key issue in the forthcoming Brentford West by-election with Labour likely to come under fire for the centre’s closure.

The council says that it was not its call to close the centre. It had been approached by Hounslow Arts Trust which had been managing the site which the council had provided to it on a rent-free basis. Despite this, rising costs, particularly electricity and the failure of tickets sales to recover after the pandemic meant the Trust was running a consistent deficit. The Trust will continue to run public arts events across the borough.

The Labour Party in Hounslow issued a statement saying, "Hounslow Council’s Labour administration are committed to delivering a new arts centre on the Police Station site in Brentford and we are working closely with all our local partners, including the Hounslow Arts Trust, to achieve this. The work on this important development is ongoing and continues to be a top priority.

"The Council’s Labour administration also remain committed that there will be no development at the current Watermans building until the new arts centre is delivered."

The Save Our Watermans campaign has been launched to demand that the council acts to stop the centre being closed as planned on 11 April and restarts the venue as a community cultural hub to operate until the promised new venue is ready. The group is planning a meeting at St. Paul's Church Hall (TW8 0PN)on Saturday 6 April at 4pm.

At the time of writing, 136 people had signed its petition which can be found here.

The group is being promoted by the President of the Chamber of Commerce in Brentford and the owner of the Red Routemaster company, Adam Shailes. He said, “We will fight hard against the closure now. We will relaunch Watermans as a Brentford community asset and we will hold those at local council level and officer level accountable for their actions to damage our town if they do not help us to achieve this and reverse this very ill-thought-out decision.”

Save Our Watermans is asking people to share their memories of the last 40 years of the Watermans by sending them to yourstory@saveourwatermans.uk. It is also urging residents to contact Hounslow Council and local ward councillors to demand that the centre continues to operate.

Brentford Voice has issued a statement saying, “Clearly this situation hasn’t just happened overnight, so answers should be provided as to why this has only just become public knowledge, and what steps if any were being explored to mitigate the consequences.

“Whilst the recent statement from Hounslow Council provides a rationale for the decision to close the Arts Centre, there are still questions about the performance of the Hounslow Arts Trust and the management of Watermans.

“Brentford Voice’s view is we’d like to see some real clarity and transparency on the future of Watermans. There are many players in this whole affair including trustees, the Council, the Arts Council, the developer/s and Watermans management.”

The group also wants to hear how the Arts Council will be involved going forward and have the conclusions published of a report by DCA, an independent cultural consultant who were working with the Watermans on a business plan last year.

Brentford Voice is also asking the council to consider ‘meanwhile uses’ for the site including the opening of a community café not unlike Our Barn at the Steam Museum.

It adds, “Other spaces could be used by community groups, collectively Brentford Voice, The Creative Mile, The Duke of London, St Faiths and other groups all have good experience in creating successful events and performances and would be keen to keep the cultural door open so to speak?

“The above are starting points, however LBH must lift the veil of secrecy if any of these things can be considered and/or acted on. This is not about ‘commercial sensitivity’ it’s about being open, honest and transparent, and sharing information that affects our community and where we live. It’s vital we secure our cultural spaces, and recognise their importance in place making and creating a sense of pride, so let’s see some real listening and engagement.”

Brentford West ward councillor Guy Lambert said he met at the weekend with members of Brentford Voice and a leader of a local community business to talk about bringing forward a plan for an interim use of the site.

He said in his weekly blog for this site, “Unfortunately the future of the centre has become a political football being vigorously kicked by various people who are really focused on opposing the council (and in some cases to get elected!) and looking for the centre to be returned to the status it had before all this. There is no chance of this happening unless there is a fairy godmother lurking somewhere.”

The local Labour Party's statement adds, "Hounslow Council’s Labour administration would like to see this building continue to be used, and are happy to meet with the community and voluntary sector to explore how best we can use this site. Any such conversations must be on the basis of potential operator(s) developing fully costed proposals that would enable the building to be brought back into use without the need for subsidy.

"Any potential proposals should be directed to Cllr Shivraj Grewal (Shivraj.Grewal@hounslow.gov.uk) and Cllr Tom Bruce (Tom.Bruce@hounslow.gov.uk) in the first instance."

A visualisation of the Arts Centre planned for the former Brentford Police Station site. Picture: LGL

Local MP Ruth Cadbury has supported the council view that cessation of performances at Watermans does not prevent the completion of the twin developments designed to deliver a new Arts Centre at the former police station on the Half Acre site which would have a larger theatre and two cinema screens. However, there remains a high degree of uncertainty as to how viable is the current approved plan that would see the new centre built.

LGL, formerly known as London Green, is understood to have been claiming that rising constructions costs and interest rate burden was making the twin projects unviable, while at the same time the council wanted to increase the proportion of affordable housing at the Half Acre site. The company and its subsidiary London Green (Watermans) were both subject to a compulsory strike off notice last year, but both were discontinued after the necessary filings were made. London Green (Watermans) currently has net liabilities of over £1.8million and its sole director is Philip Green.

Brentford Voice says that the council must confirm the developer’s current level of commitment to both sides and their financial viability. The project was identified as high risk by a report presented to the Cabinet last November and it remains unclear if any of the remedial action recommended has been taken such as the appointment of a Project Manager or discussions with housing providers on taking on the affordable component of the development . The group says its understands that the intention is that revised plans will be accommodated by means of minor amendments to the existing planning permission and wants to see details of any planned changes. The possibility of the original planning permission lapsing if work is not commenced on time remains.

Thus far, the council has remained adamant that the intention remains to use funds from Albany Riverside to develop the new centre and a period without an arts centre in Brentford may be unavoidable.

Some have argued that the closure of Watermans makes it easier for the developer to get vacant possession to commence the Albany Riverside project of 193 flats which will ultimately provide the new centre and that this explains the council’s apparent reticence in considering alternative proposals for the use of the facility.

We have contacted LGL to ask when they plan to commence work on the two sites but await a reply.