Woolton Picture House has revealed its plans for the future, including a long-awaited reopening and ambitions to transform the venue.
The cinema, which remains closed, took to Facebook to share two proposed phases of reopening. The statement explained, though it was previously understood that the picture house intended to open this year, it will now "look to reopen in Spring 2023".
The statement said: "We started work at the cinema in July with a view to re-opening in time for Christmas this year. However, due to the volatility in the economic climate and the challenges that this brings, regrettably, having fully evaluated the situation, we made the decision to remain closed which we fully appreciate will come as disappointing news for all.
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"However, we will be reassessing the situation in December 2022 and if at that point the financial climate indicates more stability, will look to reopen in Spring 2023 and will update you about this accordingly in January 2023."
The statement added that, before reopening, work will be completed "to bring the building up to the required levels with a renewed focus on the building’s energy specifications and performance", while the owners will commit to "making the relevant investment to improve sustainability of the building." This forms what the cinema is calling "Phase One" of its reopening, which it states will focus on preserving and protecting the building's heritage.
Phase Two involves plans to turn the building on Mason Street into "a cultural venue", with a second, smaller cinema screen, a stage and a function suite. The statement explains this will allow the picture house, which first opened its doors in 1927, to "have the ability to host a whole array of cultural events and celebrations as it moves forwards" and will "ensure it is there for generations to come".
This will require planning permission, for which the cinema will look to apply in Spring 2023.
The latest update from the Woolton Picture House comes after a Facebook post on September 28, which broke a long public silence and stated that the cinema's owners remain committed to reopening the historic venue. Before then the ECHO had reported pleas from the community in Woolton for clarity about the cinema's future - after a lack of communication followed a December 2021 commitment to opening in 2022.
Having been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic, Woolton Picture House announced its intention to close for good in July 2020. However, it was saved by a GoFundMe campaign which raised over £24,000 in donations from the public. This led to the aforementioned December 2021 statement regarding opening in 2022.
The ECHO also revealed that the cinema was also awarded government funding to assist it through the pandemic. The British Film Institute (BFI) administered the government's Culture Recovery Fund for independent cinemas in 2020, from which the picture house was awarded £37,809 of public money.
The latest statement from the picture house addressed the public funding, saying it did not take all of the allocated funds. It read: "In relation to the British Film Industry grant, the government in 2020, made available a cultural grant to all cultural venues nationwide to offer some support from the impact of COVID during a period of closure. We were approached by the BFI to apply for the grant and were subsequently awarded a grant of £36,829 with a view to reopening.
"We only actually collected a total of £25,625, as due to the ongoing challenges of Covid, having fully evaluated the situation, we were not able to reopen at that time and as such, the balance of the grant was not claimed by us."
The cinema also used its latest statement to thank people who donated the GoFundMe appeal. It said: "We would like to reiterate our gratitude to the community for raising these funds, especially at such a time of uncertainty for all.
"We fully appreciate that those who donated did so based on saving Woolton Picture House and funds at the time assisted in supporting the cinema through the challenges of covid, which was the very first part of this journey."
Having been criticised for a lack of clarity and communication this year, the cinema has now promised to provide monthly updates regarding the progress of its Phase One and Phase Two. Before the Facebook post on September 28, the cinema had not provided a public statement since December 2021, while the ECHO's attempts to make contact over email and Facebook were met with automated replies.
People will now hope improved communication will be followed by a return to the cinema in the near future, after a very long wait.
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