Extensive renovations begin at historic city property
Work is beginning on improvements and renovations to Sheffield’s Victoria Hall.
The Grade II Listed Norfolk Street building, which is managed by The Foundry Sheffield, has been awarded a £650,000 Future High Streets Fund grant which will help increase accessibility and improve facilities for visitors.
Following the appointment of project contractors Messenger, work is now getting under way, with a schedule that should see the main part of the project completed by the end of November.
Major elements of the scheme will include restoration of the building’s original Chapel Walk shop frontages, while internally there will be works to give the complex even greater accessibility.
Foundry Sheffield chief executive, Rose Durant, said: “We are happy to be working with Messenger and pleased work is now starting, meaning we will soon be able to welcome even more people into the Victoria Hall.
“This funding is intended specifically to increase footfall into the city and revitalise under-used spaces.
“As we continue to develop our reputation as a prime space for conferences, concerts and other events, this level of investment in the future can only help us to make even stronger our position as a major city centre space and one that really is welcoming to all people.
“We have had to relocate some of our tenants for a short period but for the majority of visitors we do aim to make it business as usual.”
The Foundry Sheffield is a charitable organisation charged with running Victoria Hall.
Charities operating from the building include Age Active, Assist and City of Sanctuary, who work mainly around supporting vulnerable and needy people in Sheffield and the surrounding areas.
Independent Training Services – which is part of Barnsley College – occasionally delivers its pre-employment training courses from the venue.
The Sunday Centre provides food and support to the city’s homeless communities on a Sunday afternoon and the hall is also used by many other charitable organisations offering a wide variety of activities, classes and social opportunities.
The main hall has always been a venue for choral, instrumental and other events and amateur orchestra, The Sheffield Philharmonic, holds its weekly rehearsals and the majority of its concert season performances there.
Well known too as the home of Methodism in the city since the early years of the 20th century, Methodist services are still held in the main hall twice every Sunday, and it continues to be the home of the Sheffield Methodist District office.
