Plans
Current plans are that the Cossham Hall and Foyer will open for the Winter 2025/2026 season. The Armstrong Hall/main hall will follow from mid-2026 but the timing depends on fundraising. The venue will be fully renovated and brought up to the latest safety and thermal standards. The Foyer will be improved to reduce congestion and improve the toilets and bar along with providing a stand-alone space for functions.
Total costs are £2.1 million but due to the generosity of our main donor, Maggie Lansdown, and other donation pledges, the net amount remaining is approximately £1.4 million. However, every donation will now be doubled by our main donor, making the goal much more achievable.
The venue will be available for hire by the community and for commercial events as before, but a key difference is that the new venue will also promote events of all types to appeal to the community, which will greatly increase income. There will be a marketing department with a professional Events Manager, online ticketing and a marketing strategy to support this.
Name change
We listened to those who undertook our survey in November 2024 with the resounding majority wishing the name to stay as it is due to the historical connection and use of Frank Armstrong’s name, as it was he who enabled the building of the venue back in 1970.
We’ve decided to rename the venue simply ‘The Armstrong’. We felt that the use of ‘hall’ was no longer relevant – the venue will be so much more than a hall and we felt like this was a really strong choice honouring the past but also giving the space a modern edge.
Who is running the Venue?
Thornbury Community and Arts CIO (TCA) will run the venue, with a lease from the Armstrong Hall Charitable Trust (AHT). TCA are a not-for-profit company, about to become a charity. We are an enthusiastic group of interested local people who came together for this project. The group has many professional skills and will hire additional skills, to run the venue professionally.
AHT own the buildings and historically has run the complex, but after the closure from 2020 to 2024 they investigated three future options for re-opening. They chose the option of redeveloping the existing site, as proposed by TCA and we are delighted to announce the latest news.
Thornbury Community and Arts is a registered Charitable Incorporated Organisation and is registered with the England & Wales Charity Commission #1213120.
Joint statement
The Armstrong Hall Trust and Thornbury Community and Arts are delighted to announce that they have completed the appraisal of the project to refurbish and reopen the Armstrong Hall Complex in Chapel Street, and the plans have been approved.
Everyone has worked very hard over seven months to develop and check the feasibility of this venture. It has involved both ensuring that the refurbishment works will be undertaken to meet the latest, stringent, public safety requirements, and checking that the operations plan is sound.
The major gift from benefactress Maggie Lansdown, in memory of her mother, long-time Thornbury resident Betty Brock, means that the scheme can now go ahead.
The Complex will comprise the Cossham Hall, a historic space seating 120 people, the Armstrong Hall, with capacity for 300 and full theatrical facilities, and a spacious foyer/meeting area.
This venue will serve all performance and community groups which need the use of larger spaces, all at ground level for easy and safe access. The halls can also be hired for parties, weddings, and many other purposes.
Many exciting events and activities are planned, so local people will have excellent entertainment options on their doorstep.
The venue will be managed and operated under lease as a not-for-profit community business and charity, to benefit the town and local area. It will be reliant on voluntary support, and there will be many and varied opportunities to contribute to this significant venture in the heart of Thornbury.
What will the venue be like?
The new venue will certainly bring a contemporary edge with the use of materials, textures and colours. However, the heritage of the town and local architecture will be considered in a sympathetic way. We have appointed Element Seven Interiors to lead on the ‘look’ of the venue and you can view the artists' impressions here:
