Culture Media and Sport Committee Inquiry on Protecting Built Heritage
Theatres Trust CEO Joshua McTaggart gave evidence to the Culture, Media and Sport (CMS) Committee inquiry on Protecting Built Heritage where he called for every local authority to have a cultural protection strategy.
The session focused on the value of cultural heritage building and what more can be done to protect them, particularly through the planning system.
Joshua began by explaining the importance of theatre buildings to local communities in contributing to a sense of local pride and place. He gave examples of buildings that have inspired creativity and strong local connections including London’s Roundhouse and the Tropicana in his hometown of Weston-super-Mare.
He highlighted the vital role played by Theatres Trust in ensuring that there are theatres on everyone’s doorstep that they can engage with. He shared detail of the key areas of support owners and operators of cultural heritage buildings need; governance training, a commitment to long-term capital funding schemes and sustainable business models.
“The capital project won’t be the silver bullet for a theatre if it doesn’t have the right business model in place.”
In response to questions from the Committee about the Government’s proposed reform of the statutory consultee system, which could see Theatres Trust losing its status as a Statutory Consultee on cases involving theatre buildings, he said “Theatres Trust’s work is not about keeping old buildings as they once were or blocking housebuilding. It is about making sure people have access to theatre buildings no matter where they live”
“Less than 10% of the applications that Theatres Trust responds to have anything to do with residential developments and most of those relate to the ‘Agent of Change’ principle.”
“We may be building houses, but are we building homes in places that people want to live?”
He praised Theatres Trust’s “incredible team” who make sure that “local authority planners understand the specific construction and operational requirements of theatre buildings.”
On the question of how cultural buildings can be better protected, McTaggart called for “every local authority to have a cultural strategy to protect its buildings” and urged councils to view heritage buildings “as assets, not liabilities.”
McTaggart called for local, regional, and national governments to remember that culture is cross-disciplinary.
“Culture is not just about the artistic work, it is about planning, it is about education, it is about skills, it is about infrastructure. It is cross-departmental.”
The cross-party CMS Committee scrutinises the spending, policies and administration of the government Department for Culture, Media and Sport. The inquiry previously heard from owners and operators of historic buildings including Professor Vanessa Toumlin, Chair of Morecambe Winter Gardens Preservation Trust. In her evidence Vanessa praised the invaluable role of the support provided by Theatres Trust in Morecambe Winter Garden’s journey towards restoration and full reopening.