Local authorities

King George's Hall in Blackburn will undergo an £8m renovation, it has been announced.

The Lancashire Telegraph reports that the money will come from a Levelling-Up grant of £20m to Blackburn with Darwen Council from the government, with the work concentrating on the interior of the building.

The remainder of the new money will go on refurbishment of nearby Tony’s Ballroom, the redevelopment of Blackburn's historic town centre The Exchange building, and transforming the Imperial Mill for employment and cultural use .

Blackburn with Darwen Council Leader Phil Riley said: "The announcement comes after months of hard work between council and government officials, who have together developed a strong investment package to support town centre growth priorities.

"At the heart of the bid is an impressive £8m to renovate the ever-popular King George’s Hall - a key element of Blackburn’s new £50m Cultural Quarter.

"There’ll also be new investment for the likes of Tony’s Ballroom, The Exchange and Imperial Mill.

"I am delighted with the money for King George's Hall which is an vital part of the cultural, artistic and leisure life of the borough and wider area."

A theatre in Solihull which closed last September after the discovery of dangerous concrete in its roof could reopen in 2025, it has been suggested.

Solihull Council said that a survey of the roof of The Core Theatre had made "positive findings", suggesting that areas of vulnerable reinforced autoclaved concrete (RAAC) could be repaired by next year.

The local authority said it will give a more exact opening date soon after a final technical report is delivered.

While the main auditorium remains closed, the council has developed an "alternative programme of cultural activity" backed by  £307,000 of funding from the West Midlands Combined Authority.

Manchester City Council's licensing committee has received objections to the planned opening of the 23,500-seat Co-Op Live arena in April from another local venue and the Music Venue Trust (MVT).

ASM Global, which operates the rival 21,000-capacity AO Arena, currently the UK's largest indoor venue, objected to Co-op Live's license citing "public safety" reasons.

The firm argued Co-op Live should close by midnight and not be given permission to open 24/7 on 25 occasions every year as requested.

During the hearing at Manchester Town Hall, Mark Donnelly, the COO of Co-Op Live's developer, responded:

"We are quite disappointed to see [ASM] trying to put conditions on us when they operate with an unrestricted licence.

"We feel these are competition-based. We feel there's very little from a licensing point of view."

Mr Donnelly also criticised MVT's objection, claiming that it had arisen because Co-op Live "declined" to sign up to MVT's £1-per-ticket levy, which funds its "pipeline investment fund" for grassroots venues.

Niall Forde, Licensing Advisor for MVT, said the claims were "inflammatory" and "entirely false".

He said MVT had supported the opening of the "23,500-seat auditorium bowl" but was concerned that allowing the venue's "ancillary spaces" to stay open later would impact neighbouring residents and businesses. Co-op Live would take trade off smaller venues, he added.

Previous objections to Co-Op Live from Greater Manchester Police, council trading standards, seven councillors and three residents were withdrawn after revisions were made by the organisation.

However, there is still opposition from ASM, MVT, 32 residents, two councillors and the council's public health team.

The licensing hearing continues.

A statue of the transatlantic slave trader Edward Colston will go on display at Bristol's M Shed museum after councillors rubberstamped the move yesterday (21 February).

The Art Newspaper reports that Bristol City Council's planning committee removed the statue’s Grade-II listing as part of the process for making it part of the museum’s collection.

The statue was toppled by protesters in 2020 before being plunged into Bristol Harbour. It was included in a temporary exhibition at the M Shed Museum but has been out of public view since January 2022.

A city-wide survey by the We Are Bristol History Commission found that 80% of respondents were supportive of the statue going on display at M Shed.

The commission’s chair, Professor Tim Cole of Bristol University, said: “I was pleased to see that the planning committee approved the officer's report recommending that the statue enter permanently into the museum collection. 

"Museum display emerged overwhelmingly in the conversation we — as a history commission — had with the city in 2021 as the most appropriate site for this contested and complex object."

Plans to de-list a statue of the transatlantic slave trader Edward Colston so it can be permanently housed in a museum are set for approval by Bristol council.

The Grade II-listed statue was toppled by protesters in 2020 before being plunged into Bristol Harbour. It was included in a temporary exhibition at the city's M Shed Museum but has been out of public view since January 2022.

Bristol City Council's development control committee will vote on 21 February on a proposal to delist the statue.

If approved, the statue will be part of an exhibition on protest that due to open next month.

The move follows a public consultation by the We Are Bristol History Commission, which found 80% of Bristolians agreed it should be placed in a museum.

According to a council report, Bristol City Council Conservation said a statue of Colston returning to its plinth was "not a reasonable expectation" due to the possibility of "civil unrest".

Mayor of Bristol Marvin Rees said: "I remain in support of the view that the best place for the statue is in a museum where its context, and that of what it represents to many communities, can be appropriately shared with diverse audiences."