Closed venues light up in red to highlight their struggle

Performance venues in Caerphilly County Borough lit themselves in red last night, Wednesday September 30, to highlight their struggles in the face of coronavirus.

Caerphilly Workmen’s Hall, Bedwas Workmen’s Hall, Newbridge Memo, each run by community-based charities, and the council-owned Blackwood Miners’ Institute all joined in with the national Light it in Red campaign.

Each month live music venues and theatres across the UK, closed because of current restrictions, have been lit in red to highlight the need for support across the entertainment industry.

Kathy Lye, Chair of Caerphilly Workmen’s Hall, said: “It is the first time in 95 years that the hall has closed. We’re staying positive and using the time to our advantage, getting some maintenance and decorating done – all socially distanced and in household groups.

“We’ve assessed if we can open with social distancing – how many audience members and volunteers we can have – but it would be a very, very, restricted audience which wouldn’t be financially viable.”

While there has been no financial assistance from the Welsh or UK governments, the hall still has a series of fixed costs it needs to meet – such as utilities. The only financial help it has had has been through the business rates grant given to businesses during the national lockdown.

Kathy added: “The entire entertainment industry is under strain at the moment. There are some small venues that have had to close. It’s affecting the voluntary and professional venues.”

At Newbridge Memo it is a similar story. Four part-time staff who work for the venue have been on furlough leave.

The Memo receives some rental income from Caerphilly County Borough Council for the library, but costly overheads still need to be paid.

It too has had some grant funding to help – but it is not enough.

Trustee Bob Mettyer said: “We are struggling. The staff have been on furlough. Some have come off for small hours to do maintenance, but when are we allowed to open? We are surviving just about and that’s it.

“Our customer base has gone. Our choirs cannot sing and our dancers cannot dance close to each other – we cannot open up.”

Bedwas Workmens’ Hall has also suffered the loss of being there for its community. It usually hosts around 21 classes a week – some have returned with social distancing, but only one can be held at a time.

Emma Phipps-Magill, chair of the hall’s committee, said: “Our classes range from quilt-making, to art and dance – that’s all stopped.

“People who are qualified and use dance and drama for their income, it has impacted them.”

Last month the Welsh Government announced a £53 million Cultural Recovery Fund. Grants of up to £150,000 are available, but will this be enough to help venues when they can’t plan for the future?

Emma added: “When venues like ours reopen, people need to come back and support us so that we can get things going.”