Extra £1.5m needed to complete Worcester arts venue
Worcester City Council is poised to plough in more than £1m to finish off a flagship regeneration project, with the scheme edging closer to a 2027 completion date.
A refurbished Scala cinema and the neighbouring Corn Exchange building on Angel Street will form the centrepiece of a £26m city centre gateway project when they reopen as the Scala Arts Centre next year.
Now, a report set to go before councillors on 1 September will ask them to approve a final £1.5m in contingency funding in order to get the project over the finishing line, after a number of setbacks during construction.
Contractor Speller Metcalfe started work on the Scala building at the end of January 2025 with a forecast completion date of mid-October 2026, while a handover for the Corn Exchange was originally forecast for November.
Initial electrical works to the Corn Exchange revealed the power supply needed a major cable upgrade, with National Grid set to lay new cable to the building at a cost of £200,000.
The building’s power issues have also necessitated a redesign of the kitchen area, an upgrade that will now be carried out in a future phase of works, but which could end up costing in excess of £1m.
Meanwhile, extra fire protection and more unforeseen electrical work at the Scala building has added a further £300,000 to the final bill, while the city council was also left carrying the can for removing “large amounts of builders’ rubble”, apparently left over from previous alterations and discovered in bricked-off areas of the basement.
The unexpected issues with the refurbishment mean the Scala building will now not be completed until November, while work on the neighbouring Corn Exchange will be finished in February next year.
When it opens in June, the council says the arts centre will feature three new studio spaces, a bar and a cafe – described as an exciting new destination for independent film, music, live performances and a centre for creativity in Worcester city centre.
“This has been a complex and long-running project and we are pleased it is close to completion now,” said Cllr Lynn Denham, Leader of Worcester City Council.
“Scala arts centre will be entertaining and connecting the people of Worcester for decades to come. The charity’s vision and mission, as a centre for arts and learning, is what the council has invested in, and we are so pleased to see Scala already out working in our communities and building opportunities for the next generations.”
Further government-backed proposals to create a secure space for outdoor events in Angel Place are planned once work has been completed.
Worcester City Council’s Policy and Resources Committee will meet on Tuesday, 1 September, to discuss the report.
