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Category Archives: Fairfield Halls
‘The damage to the Fairfield Halls reputation is severe’
CROYDON IN CRISIS: While the cash-strapped council remains preoccupied with its finances, the once prestigious arts centre on the other side of Park Lane risks sliding towards cultural oblivion. By our arts correspondent, BELLA BARTOCK There are growing concerns that … Continue reading
Posted in Arnhem Gallery, Art, Ashcroft Theatre, BH Live, Borough of Culture 2023, Business, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, GLL - Better, Mayor of London, Neil Chandler, Oliver Lewis, Paula Murray, Sadiq Khan, The Wreck, Theatre, Tony Newman
Tagged Ashcroft Theatre, BHLive, Borough of Culture, Croydon, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Labour, Oliver Lewis, Paula Murray, Sadiq Khan, The Wreck, Tony Newman
13 Comments
Cultural hopes are raised as Talawa and Nick Cave take a bow
Two shows staged at the borough’s major arts centre over the weekend helped to underline how precious the Fairfield Halls should be for Croydon. If only the artistic programme on offer more generally could rise to the local public’s expectations, … Continue reading
Posted in Art, BH Live, Borough of Culture 2023, Fairfield Halls, Music, Talawa Theatre Company, The Wreck
Tagged BHLive, Fairfield Halls, Nick Cave, Talawa Theatre Company, The Wreck
6 Comments
Now top art critic warns: ‘Somebody is going to wind up in jail’
One of the country’s leading art critics, Norman Lebrecht, has today weighed in to the gathering storm around the £70million Fairfield Halls fiasco, warning that, “Somebody is going to wind up in jail” over what he calls the “chaotic rebuilding” … Continue reading
Posted in Art, Ashcroft Theatre, Brick by Brick, Fairfield Halls, Music
Tagged Brick by Brick, Croydon, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Nrman Lebrecht
14 Comments
Council has no answers over missing Fairfield Halls sculpture
Croydon’s crass council has been accused of another act of cultural vandalism, after “losing” a significant piece of mid-century street art from the site alongside the “award-winning” (try not to laugh) Fairfield Halls. The art installation, in a modernist, geometric … Continue reading
Choirs emerge from lockdown with Oval and Fairfield dates
Two of Croydon’s leading choirs are gearing up for a return to performing in public for the first time since lockdown last year. First off the mark is the Croydon Male Voice Choir, which is singing to diners at the … Continue reading
It’s time to put back the Sparks into Croydon’s Fairfield Halls
For £70m, the Fairfield Halls should be offering a lot more for the community, says KEN TOWL If the Fairfield Halls disappoint, and they do, over and over, it is because they have a lot to live up to. Through … Continue reading
The Fairfield Halls Community Choir is seeking a new home
By VERONA CHARD Prior to Lockdown, I ran the Fairfield Halls Community Choir “plus sessions”, I had created for toddlers and babies called “Donkey Dots For Tots”, plus a monthly musical balloon band prom for families. But I’ve been told … Continue reading
Posted in Art, BH Live, Fairfield Halls, Music
Tagged BHLive, Fairfield Halls, Fairfield Halls Community Choir
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Now it’s the Fairfield Halls fiasco that gets one in the Eye
Britain’s best-selling satirical fortnightly returns to Croydon’s financial woes – and says police should be called in to investigate deals around unfinished arts centre refurbishment While some citizen bloggers claim to try “to emulate Private Eye”, the professional journalists here … Continue reading
Brick by Brick failed to replace Fairfield’s 60-year-old windows
CROYDON IN CRISIS: The ‘fiasco’ of Brick by Brick’s bungled £70m refurbishment of the arts venue gets worse, with the latest admission of failures from a cabinet member. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES Ollie “Shit Show” Lewis, the council cabinet member … Continue reading
Posted in Alison Butler, Art, Ashcroft Theatre, Brick by Brick, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Jo Negrini, Mayor of London, Oliver Lewis, Timothy Godfrey, Tony Newman
Tagged Alison Butler, Brick by Brick, Croydon, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Jo Negrini, Labour, London Borough of Croydon, Oliver Lewis
11 Comments
Millions of questions for BHLive over Fairfield grant aid
CROYDON IN CRISIS: It’s like nothing has ever changed at the borough’s prestigious arts centre, where tribute acts still dominate its sparse programme, while the venue operators are staying schtum about how they’re spending public money. By our arts correspondent, … Continue reading
Posted in Art, Ashcroft Theatre, BH Live, Borough of Culture 2023, Brick by Brick, Business, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, London Mozart Players, Neil Chandler, The Wreck
Tagged Arts Council England, Ashcroft Theatre, BHLive, Brick by Brick, Croydon, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Labour, The Wreck
5 Comments
Fairfield Halls’ £70m fiasco: ‘BxB didn’t know what it was doing’
CROYDON IN CRISIS: Trade newspaper The Stage has described the five-year saga of the Fairfield Halls refurbishment as a ‘catastrophic mess’ and a ‘£70m fiasco’. Now, the centre’s former artistic director has broken his silence over the bungling of Brick … Continue reading
Posted in Arnhem Gallery, Art, Ashcroft Theatre, BH Live, Borough of Culture 2023, Fairfield Halls, Neil Chandler, Oliver Lewis, Sadiq Khan, Tony Newman
Tagged BHLive, Croydon, Croydon Council, Dame Judi Dench, Fairfield Halls, Neil Chandler, Oliver Lewis, Sadiq Khan, The Stage, Tony Newman
17 Comments
Mystery of the ‘lost’ £600,000 expert report into Fairfield Halls
CROYDON IN CRISIS: Suspicions mount over the business of Brick by Brick and the scandal surrounding the Fairfield Halls refurbishment. But even members of the Town Hall’s scrutiny committee are being denied vital information by council directors. By STEVEN DOWNES … Continue reading
Posted in Asmat Hussain, Brick by Brick, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Robert Ward, Sarah Hayward, Sean Fitzsimons
Tagged Asmat Hussain, Brick by Brick, Conservative, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Hamida Ali, Labour, Robert Ward, Sarah Hayward, Scrutiny and Overview Committee, Sean Fitzsimons, Tony Newman, Tory
23 Comments
Reports on Fairfield Halls and BxB missing from audit meeting
CROYDON IN CRISIS: Tonight’s meeting of the council’s GPAC – General Purposes and Audit Committee – will mark the end of a error, as Labour councillors risk handing even more control to council executives. By STEVEN DOWNES Karen Jewitt, the … Continue reading
Posted in Brick by Brick, Chris Buss, Fairfield Halls, Hamida Ali, Karen Jewitt, Katherine Kerswell, Tim Pollard, Tony Newman
Tagged Chris Buss, Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, General Purposes and Audit Committee, GPAC, Hamida Ali, Karen Jewitt, Katherine Kerswell, Labour, Rapid Review, Report in the Public Interest, RIPI, Scrutiny and Overview Committee, Tim Pollard, Tony Newman, Tory
6 Comments
Brick by Brick and the 18 documents officers want kept secret
CROYDON IN CRISIS: Not for the first time, elected councillors have been denied vital information about Town Hall deals. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES Croydon Conservatives have “called in” for extra scrutiny three multi-million-pound deals intended to off-load the council’s loss-making … Continue reading
Virtuoso cello star Kanneh-Mason to reopen Fairfield Halls
Sheku Kanneh-Mason, one of the fastest rising stars of classical music, will be playing at the Fairfield Halls next month, in the Croydon art centre’s first live performances since covid lockdown began in March 2020. Kanneh-Mason is so good, he’s … Continue reading
Posted in Art, Fairfield Halls, London Mozart Players, Music
Tagged Fairfield Halls, London Mozart Players, Sheku Kanneh-Mason
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Council to pick up £69.2m costs of failed Fairfield Halls refurb
CROYDON IN CRISIS: Town Hall correspondent, KEN LEE, on the latest council bail-out for Brick by Brick over the bungled and unfinished refurbishment of the borough’s major arts centre Croydon’s cash-strapped council is to step in and pick up another … Continue reading
Going to the lowest, only bidder: council finds buyer for BxB
EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES Croydon Council could have to pay at least another £40million in order to sell off Brick by Brick, the Labour-controlled local authority’s failed housing developer which bankrupted the Town Hall. And the multi-million-pound spending on the … Continue reading
So you want to be an actor? Fairfield Halls from May 31
Posted in Art, Fairfield Halls, Savvy Theatre Company, Theatre
Tagged Fairfield Halls, Savvy Theatre Company
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Brick by Brick’s delayed accounts show another £0.8m loss
Report states ‘material uncertainty in respect of going concern’ Fairfield Halls project costs soar to £76.4m New directors find many BxB properties over-valued Auditors ‘unable to determine whether adequate accounting records have been kept’ With just a few hours to … Continue reading
Ali and Kerswell are summoned to Parliamentary inquiry
CROYDON IN CRISIS: ‘There is much that the council needs to do to become a properly functioning local authority’ says panel’s report to government, as it recommends more cuts to Croydon’s Adult Social Care and Children’s Services. By STEVEN DOWNES … Continue reading
Posted in Adult Social Care, Children's Services, Chris Buss, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Hamida Ali, Improvement Board, Katherine Kerswell, Section 114 notice, Tony McArdle
Tagged Chris Buss, Clive Betts MP, Croydon, Croydon Council, Hamida Ali, Improvement Panel, Katherine Kerswell, Labour, London Borough of Croydon, MHCLG, Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government, S114, Section 114, Tony McArdle
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Budget is approved but Labour council haunted by its past
CROYDON IN CRISIS: Back-to-back meetings yesterday pushed through the paperwork to balance the books and increase Council Tax. But Hamida Ali’s administration cannot shake off its part in the borough’s financial calamity. By WALTER CRONXITE, political editor With the £120million … Continue reading
Posted in Alison Butler, Andrew Pelling, Andrew Stranack, Brick by Brick, Chris Buss, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Hamida Ali, Ian Parker, Jason Cummings, Jeet Bains, Lynne Hale, Maddie Henson, Paul Scott, Report in the Public Interest, Sean Fitzsimons, Section 114 notice, Simon Hall, Stuart King, Tony Newman, Vidhi Mohan
Tagged Alison Butler, Andrew Pelling, Brick by Brick, Conservative, Council Tax, Croydon, Croydon Council, Hamida Ali, Jason Cummings, Labour, London Borough of Croydon, Paul Scott, Rapid Review, S114, Section 114, Simon Hall, STUART KING, Tony Newman, Tory
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Conflicts of interest, incomplete contracts, unlawful payments – how the Fairfield Halls refurbishment cost Croydon £50m-plus
EXCLUSIVE: Council was warned in 2017 of problems with the management of works at the borough’s flagship arts centre. By STEVEN DOWNES A report by the council’s internal auditors has raised very serious concerns over the mismanagement of the multi-million-pound … Continue reading
Council paid £1m compensation for unfinished Fairfield Halls
EXCLUSIVE: A year-long investigation has uncovered multi-million-pound payments by the council on its arts centre, largely because of the bungled refurbishment managed by Brick by Brick. And it is now suggested some payments may have been unlawful. By STEVEN DOWNES … Continue reading
£30m Fairfield Halls project never went to competitive tender
EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES Brick by Brick’s management of the refurbishment of the Halls has been subject to disputes with at least two leading contractors £3m grant to build an art gallery was diverted to pay for other work – … Continue reading
Posted in Alison Butler, Art, Ashcroft Theatre, BH Live, Brick by Brick, Business, Colm Lacey, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Simon Hall, Tony Newman
Tagged Alison Butler, Brick by Brick, Colm Lacey, Croydon, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Labour, London Borough of Croydon, Mott MacDonald, Simon Hall, Tony Newman, Vinci Construction UK Ltd
22 Comments
Directors Murray and Cheesbrough start exodus from council
CROYDON IN CRISIS: The director of planning and the borough’s culture chief are to leave Fisher’s Folly – the first top-level departures since the council issued its Section 114 notice. By STEVEN DOWNES Heather Cheesbrough, Croydon’s director of planning, and … Continue reading
Posted in Art, BH Live, Borough of Culture 2023, Brick by Brick, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Heather Cheesbrough, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Paula Murray, Planning, Section 114 notice, Shifa Mustafa
Tagged Brick by Brick, Croydon, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Heather Cheesbrough, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, London Borough of Croydon, Paula Murray, Planning
16 Comments
