Showcasing Petersfield Festival Hall – Petersfield Town Council

showcasing

Petersfield Festival Hall

recent fundraising music concert showed what we're made of!

SUNFLOWER CONCERT RAISES MONEY FOR UKRAINE

Weekend of live music at Petersfield Festival Hall has clearly illustrated that the entertainment facility recognised for its exceptional orchestras, plays and pantomimes can broaden its offering, becoming true multi-use community venue.

Officers at Petersfield Town Council – which forms one half of the building – were moved by the recent welcoming of Ukrainian refugees to Petersfield and surrounding villages.

Deputy Halls Manager, Philip Swan said “I considered what possibilities were available to us as a local authority to support the wider Ukrainian community, and it was clear to me that this was an opportunity not just to raise money for the DEC Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal, but also to showcase the incredible value and potential of our iconic facility.”

Petersfield Town Council reached out to our Ukrainian guest via host families, to invite them to the two day social where they had the opportunity to integrate with the wider community.

Ukrainian guests shared their stories with locals in between their joyous carefree dancing ‘like no one was watching!’

Many local organisations were keen to sponsor the event, facilitating its promotion and voluntary support over the course of the weekend. Among the sponsors were Specsavers, Hampshire Media Group and local printing company Petaprint.

The Half Moon of neighboring village Sheet provided the bar, Shine Community Radio covered the event and ITP Lighting collaborated with Petersfield’s voluntary technical creatives – Green ‘A’ Team to design an astonishingly and memorable light spectacular the West End would’ve been proud of!

Petersfield Town Council were extremely humbled by the generosity and commitment of all 20+ bands, stretching the length of the musical spectrum; who gave their time and effort totally free of charge, thus maximising the money raised for this worthy cause. Many of our artists, who came from near and far, expressed a desire to return.

Attendees to the Sunflower Festival, who ranged from tiny tots at the mini-ravers, through to those who were able to show their appreciation of folk music by mouthing lyrics – helped us raise over £1k for Ukraine.

If you would like to keep up to date with Petersfield Town Council events go to www.petersfield-tc.gov.uk/subscribe to sign up.

EMiliYAH and The MightyZ All Stars

"We were made to feel truly welcome at the fabulous venue by our hosts. The stage set up and sound quality were both excellent. We hope to bring more Reggae to the Festival Theatre in future. "

James Burrell as eLVIS

"Lovely venue with great sound and facilities. I’ve messaged you regarding returning for future events."

Scott Soo, Noise Factory united

"The Festival Hall punches above its weight for a town of this size - excellent facilities that could potentially draw in wider public for ambitious cultural/artistic/social events."

andy Hawxwell

"As a solo-artist it was great to play to an audience who listened to every word/note I played and to meet some top quality other musicians."

Puffin Boy

"We thought the venue had some really good facilities, the sound was excellent, parking was really good, helpful and friendly staff, a really positive atmosphere and both the main hall and the hall that we performed in are lovely spaces with great acoustics that could be utilised for a wide selection of events. Events could incorporate music, art, film and market stalls to house possibly Halloween or Christmas events. We loved playing the event and it had a great vibe and feel the venue has lots of options for local, national and international performers."

Sunflower Press Article

We thank local newspaper PETERSFIELD POST for their double-page spread.

384

seating capacity

190

tiered seating

100

rose room seating

500

standing capacity

Facilities

Petersfield Festival Hall offers a full stage show experience with access to professional sound and lighting equipment.

A versatile, multi-purpose venue, suitable for all kinds of events. Perfect for music, drama and dance. The facilities are also an ideal choice for exhibitors, fairs, business meetings, corporate functions, dinner-dances and galas.

• WiFi access throughout the building.

• Large commercial kitchen and bar area.

• Access to a full range of crockery etc.

• Located in the heart of Petersfield and close to the town centre with easy access to local bars/ restaurants.

• Venue set in the Petersfield Festival Hall carpark with ample parking which is FREE after 6pm.

With well served rail links and central location Petersfield Festival Hall is the perfect choice whatever the occasion!

performing arts in east hampshire

Q&A

How old is Petersfield Festival Hall?

Building began in 1935, with art-deco details fashionable at that time.

Originally purposed to house the Urban District Council (now Petersfield Town Council).

The footprint of the building grew through 1970’s into the 80’s. (see timeline below for specific dates).

What's the Carbon Footprint?

Petersfield Town Council recognise that the building is not as environmentally friendly as it could or should be. We have responded to the government’s zero targets by drawing up our own Climate Emergency Strategy; one possible aim being discussed is to implement this target by 2035 for all PTC buildings and operations. We have incorporated the aim of achieving the EnerPHit Passivhaus Building Standard in our refurbishment plans.

What does the future hold?

For an iconic 1930s building, which to date has had little investment, we think it’s doing pretty well – however, there is an appetite to not only carry out remedial work but also to future-proof the facility for generations to come.

What do residents think?

As part of RIBA Stage 3 (Royal Institute of British Architects) we held a public consultation roadshow – the largest we’ve ever run, over a four month period – to obtain views from local residents on their current usage and what they would like to see going forward. The general consensus was that people wanted to see a wider variety of uses – which correlates with our desire to become a multi-use venue. more…

"A few nights ago I attended a zoom webinar of the AGM of the Petersfield Society, followed by a fascinating and very informative talk about the status of the plans for the Festival Hall, given by Cllr J C Crissey. The Presentation made a clear number of important points that have helped me review my position on the redevelopment. In the first place it is clear something needs to be done, and soon. The building is in poor shape and it is no longer fit for purpose, being nearly 90 years old. Secondly, and critically, no irrevocable decision has yet been taken by the town council on the way forward. Thirdly, the public will have a chance to have its say in a public consultation sometime in the next few months; and finally, if the full plans are implemented, Petersfield will have the most modern and environmentally-friendly, low-running cost, community facility in Britain. It will be of use to a wide range of users from toddler and youth groups, special interest groups, the performing arts, health services as well as providing modern office accommodation for staff. The town council deserves thanks, and support for the approach it has and is taking on this important matter. They would appear to be following in the brave footsteps of their predecessors who had the vision and foresight to build the hall in the 1930s."

Charles Bevan

Petersfield Resident