Community Centre at the ex Sea Salt restaurant at the Mowlem?
We have sent a proposal to the Town Council that they take over the lease of the present Sea Salt premises to form a Community Centre.
We are looking for support for this idea and would like people to write in to the Town Council before they debate the matter on 21st March.
If you would like more details please contact me: sallymaltby@googlemail.com
Posted by Sally Maltby to swanageview at 8/3/11 9:35 AM
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
113 comments:
Sally, can you give us some more information. It is an interesting idea but we need some facts to communicate to the council. What unmet needs have you found? How would this differ from the Youth and Community Centre in the High Street? The rent is £600 a week I believe, plus staffing costs. What income generating activities/uses are planned to cover this and what prevents them being conducted elsewhere at less expense?
Posted by Anonymous to swanageview at 8/3/11 3:21 PM
Erk, and I imagined that we could have something similar to the Tate at St Ives with an organic tasteful restaurant providing locally cooked food, similar to that of the Mill Bakery at Lyme Regis, with the Purbeck Film people or similar, managing the Theatre alongside to coincide with the restaurant opening times. Does that sound too much of an ask.
Outline proposal for a Community Venue – Swanage Town Council.
• The 30 year lease for the ‘Sea Salt’ site at the Mowlem is for sale for around £100,000 - Oliver Miles as agent - present rental £30,000 reviewable after 5 years. The leaseholders are apparently imposing a restriction that both floors of the premises be used for catering.
• It seems to us, and many others, that the Mowlem is not acting properly within its charitable statement. Nobody would suggest that the trustees are acting in anything but good faith here, but their policies perhaps require updating and a realistic re-assessment. Apart from other factors we would suggest that it unwittingly acts as unfair business competition in Swanage by dint of its privileged positions. It might be within the actual letter of the charitable law but it certainly does not seem to fulfil the intentions of the founder and the declared statement on the Charity Commission website (see attached schedule). We feel that this needs to be addressed soon as the situation can only become worse.
• This site would be an ideal venue for various community activities including:
o Tourist Information Office and CAB
o Community Meeting centre/Town Hall Offices/ Council Chamber
o Many other functions of Community interest including an Art Centre.
o And give disability access for these functions.
• There is a certain urgency to act here as other groups are interested.
• We would like to ask the Town Council if they would be prepared, either in the interim or long term, to acquire this lease to enable feasibility/ business/funding plans to be investigated – either by themselves or the undersigned.
• The lease/rental costs are likely to be considerably offset by the lack of maintenance/repair costs to existing TIC and, potentially, also the Town Hall. Presumably the Council's own advisers would be in a strong position to know whether the figures asked for the lease and for rent are reasonable and/or to negotiate terms that are best for the community.
• We are certain that this venue would provide an invaluable asset for the town and provide a much needed focus and community facility for Swanage. This has been outlined as desirable in various plans in the past but until now viability has been prejudiced for lack of suitable premises. We also think that it would be an entirely suitable use for a building which has in the past attracted various criticisms and was intended for ‘improving the conditions of life for the Inhabitants of Swanage’.
Declared priorities for the Mowlem Institute
‘Theatre, Cinema and Community Arts Centre for the benefit of the inhabitants of Swanage and in particular for the use of meetings, lectures and classes or for other forms of recreation and leisure time occupation with the object of providing further education and improving the conditions of like for the said inhabitants.’
This appears on the Charity Commission website
Their own statement:
‘The Trustees shall appropriate the building specified in the schedule hereto with the appurtenances thereof (hereinafter together referred to as the Institute Building) for the use for the purpose of a library and reading room for the benefit of the inhabitants of Swanage and in particular for the use of meeting, lectures and classes or for other forms of recreation and leisure time occupation with the object or providing further education and improving the conditions of life for the said inhabitants.
In addition
If and in so far as the Institute building is not required for actual use for the purposes of the Charity the Trustees may grant short or occasional lettings of the same or part thereof for use for any other purpose of benefit to the said inhabitants upon such terms as the Trustees think fit but so as not to impede the use of the same for the purposes of the Charity and may grant other letting or leases thereof subject to the sanction of the Charity Commissioners.’
Before going down this route, I have just one question for STC:
-is it going to keep, repair and upgrade the antiquated, crumbling and non-compliant Town Hall? Let's decide that first before adding more space for the town to pay for.
So what would the difference be between the Mowlem providing a "community art centre" and the council providing the same thing in the restaurant? There is little enough use made of the existing facility and there is hardly a queue of would be users who could be diverted to a duplicate one.
The ideal of course would be for the town and the Mowlem to work together to make the building into something that people actually want to go to and economically viable. It's too big a project to be run on a voluntary basis by beleagered trustees....The Community Room is a joke, fit perhaps for offices (the town hall?)but I should think most people loose the will to live after porting things up and down and passing 'trade' is of course negligable. The signage on the outside of the building says it all.....This sounds like a good idea if only to start the process going and an unmissable opportunity to make something of a sad site in the middle of Swanage.
Anonymous said...
Before going down this route, I have just one question for STC:
-is it going to keep, repair and upgrade the antiquated, crumbling and non-compliant Town Hall? Let's decide that first before adding more space for the town to pay for.
8/3/11 11:06 PM
It will be very interesting to see which public buildings in Swanage survive the 'Purbeck Locality Property Review'.
Would a high maintenance building such as the Town Hall survive the proposed sell off?
But hey, it would make a wonderfully bijou second home..........
When I first saw this I thought it was an April 1st item that had escaped into the wild early but now I realise it is a post modern take on Cluedo, with council offices in the Mowlem restaurant being along the lines of Colonel Mustard in the conservatory. What will be next I wonder, Nixons Hardware in a holiday flat, The Grand Hotel in an industrial unit? Watch this space.
How about some space for permanent produce market
How about the opposite and asking the council to hand the town hall over to whoever buys the restaurant lease. It would be ideal for gimmicks like medieval banquets and the rent would cover that for alternative offices.
A great idea, for just £110,000 the Town Council can buy the lease from Sea Salt and then pay the annual rent and rates for the local artists to have a free gallery.
Sally Maltby is described on the internet as a painter, so in return she could perhaps paint the toilet doors to save on the running expenses.
This might be a silly question, but does the renting out of shops fit the criteria?
I am horrified that by putting a serious and well thought out document on this site - that we hoped would provoke discussion - to find that it quickly descends into trivia about the toilet doors etc.Nobody is suggesting exclusive artistic use, read the document.....
Look at what has been achieved at Stratford, Bidport, and nearer to home, Harmans Cross Village Hall.....to see what Community Centres can be given some energy and imagination.
In the face of a national hysteria about public spending how do you expect a proposal for the council to shell out £100,000 up front, £30,000 a year for rent and as much again for staff to be taken seriously?
I am still waiting for some more information on how this would differ from the many other community venues in Swanage. We have the Mowlem Community Room, RC, URC, CofE (Ulwell) and Methodist Church Halls, Herston Hall, the Council Chamber, The Arts Club Centre, the Football Club and Queensmead Hall. Thats ten. Most of them are underused and if people can't organise enough community activities to fill these how does adding another venue help? Is it really space we need? If this is a serious proposal can we discuss what it offers that is not already there.
Many of the venues sited are either not central or inadequate for purpose - this sort of centre could act as Town statement and provide convenient and modern facilities for beth visitors and residents. An entirely appropriate place for the TIC and the CAB for example.
As to funding, well there's the Lottery and many others who have funded similar ventures - one would only ask the Town Council to fund in the interim to save the site while other methods are investigated and a rigorous business plan commissioned.
What have people expressed an interest in doing that cannot take place in existing venues? If you want to convince the council you need a big list to show there is a lot of demand. I cited 10 venues, some very modern, some with parking and it is hard to see how adding a couple of upstairs rooms with no parking to the list will help. How do you convince sceptics of this?
What is a town statement?
Can a council office be a town statement?
OK, the bar is downstairs but it has no main road exposure. Only pedestrians and people on boats can see it.
"Apart from other factors we would suggest that it unwittingly acts as unfair business competition in Swanage by dint of its privileged positions."
Can you tell what this means as well please. What businesses does the Mowlem compete with? Do you think we would have commercial cinemas and theatres here if it were not for the Mowlem? The rents on the restaurant and shops are not below market levels so you can't mean those.
The masonic hall in Wareham gets used for various local community events, eg farmers market. Has anyone who needs a venue thought of asking the Swanage lodge what their terms are. Its in the town centre, as close to everything as the Wareham one is.
I omitted the upstairs room at the conservative club from my list of venues, to say nothing of the British Legion and Swanage Bay View. Thats thirteen venues plus a maybe. The conservative club is highly central and the room is modern in a sort of suspended plastic ceiling way.
"a serious and well thought out document". Not visible on this site, I'm afraid, Sally. There are few tangible proposals, but merely nebulous wishes for 'a town statement', 'community activities', 'Art Centre', 'tasteful restaurant' etc. All for £100,000 plus running costs - lighting, heating, rates.
There may be a really good idea here, so let's see a reasoned case and not this feeble squib.
It's realy to do with how we want Swanage to be in the future and a bit to do with the Mowlem as central eye-sore. Of course one can make-do,Swanage is acquiring an air of having to make-do and a central good venue like we suggest puts a whole different aspect on the town.
In my opinion the requirement of a charity is not to use their priveleged position - centre of town, right by the sea-side, charitable status, to let out their premises to increase competition in the town without any community compensation - it's all there in the charity statement.And 30/40 year leases are not part of the statement either, unless that can be interpreted as 'short'
It looks like many people think the idea is daft - Swanage was founded on a dream - that of George Burt - and we need to maintain it but keep it up to date.
The Mowlem trustees are very miffed at anything that looks like critiscim but the whole town moans about them......what to do?
Sally, why the Mowlem restaurant and bar? Why did you not ask the council to rent the newly rebuilt shop next to Boots or the one going up where the Kings Bar was. Neither come with an obligation to carry on an existing restaurant business. Several other retail premises are or have recently been available and would be more suitable. The former Wilcox and Cook in Station Road or the former Purbeck Press which has first floor rooms and workshops at the back also suggest themselves. Sea Salt seems to have very little going for it.
What to you mean here? The Sea Salt site is magnificent with its sea view and glass windows. Next to Boots is not the same thing at all.
And I was going to add, there is short term economics and long term economics.
And why doesn't anyone else give their name?
"In my opinion the requirement of a charity is not to use their priveleged position - centre of town, right by the sea-side, charitable status, to let out their premises to increase competition in the town without any community compensation"
What on earth does that mean? It was built with the intention of having rents to cover running costs. It is perfectly acceptable for charities to have investments, in whatever form, property, shares, etc so what is the problem.
Getting the council to pay them £30,000 a year would not change this, all it would do is feed public money in rather than private money.
How does you proposal alter anything. The trust will continue to receive its rent. Which aspect of council spending do you think should go down to pay for it?
Very nice view, very nice big windows but why do council offices and CAB need either?
What gain is there for the town in loosing a restaurant with a good view and having a "community venue" and council offices in the space.
Can you specify what goes on in a community venue and why these activities need a good view any more than dining does. In particular why should we tax payers fork out a thousand quid a week for it.
Lets just follow the logic of something Sally says. She does not thing the Mowlem trust has the right to lease out the shops and restaurant. What would happen if the charity commission came to this conclusion and told them to stop. Would the tenants simply slink away? I doubt it. If they had to get out they would want compensation. There would be nothing coming in to pay for upkeep and no alternative source of revenue so the trust would have to sell the building and use the proceeds to compensate the leasees. The only likely purchaser would be a developer who would tear it down and put up some apartments. Result no Mowlem.
Sally, you quote this:
"the building ...(is)... for the purpose of a library and reading room
in so far as the Institute building is not required for actual use for the purposes of the Charity ...The Trustees ... may grant other letting or leases thereof subject to the sanction of the Charity Commissioners."
Assuming they have that sanction then they are doing exactly what it says, providing a reading room and leasing out parts of the building not needed for that purpose.
There's the letter of the law and the intentions of the declared statement, all of course up for interpretation.
So, I give up, I suspect nothing will happen and everyone will carry on moaning for ever, well, we tried and Swanage will sink slowly into the fast eroding sands and everyone will make-do secure in both their anonymity and with the justification that 'logic' won the day, ah well....
It's easy. by the way to put a name to your post just click Name/url
How often have we heard the advocate of some scheme say the place will cease to be without their proposal.
In fact there is a very simple way of stopping Swanage sinking into the sands. It is just to offer the people who come here something worth spending their money on and coming again for. That means cultural offerings of a national or international level of excellence and restaurants of a similar level. I can't see how the town council could be relied on to provide either any more than the Mowlem trustees and the various restauranteurs manage to.
My biggest problem with this proposal is its parochialism. In essence it is about taking a prime site out of the economy and turning it into some sort of hobbies centre for a small number of locals paid for out of the public purse on the extraordinary grounds that this is best done somewhere with a good view.
let's just hope Wetherspoons takes it over
It appears the rumour they were going for the East Bar was false. Lets start one that they are going into Sea Salt. BTW Do they still do those steaks from some strange African animal? Kudu was it? Probably a lot more tasty than underaged, underhung English beef though.
For the same amount as the rent the council could fund a Swanage impresario to make things happen here, chase sponsorship and other funding and generally pep the place up.
Apologies to the Baptists. I left their two establishments off my list. That brings it to 15 to say nothing of back rooms in pubs and the like. A number have dining rooms that are empty during the week out of season. Going upmarket the former chapel at Purbeck House hotel us first class but pricey. So in all we have about 20 venues in the community. I would have thought that a number of them would be better than doubling up in a restaurant/council office/tourist information even if they lack a sea view.
I see in the Advertiser that the police are wanting to close the cop shop and have a presence at the town hall. If this comes to pass then any exodus of town hall staff will be delayed for some time.
What will happen to the police station? They sold the adjacent residential properties some years ago and would no doubt want to do the same, however, the state of the market is against them.
Here is a suggestion for Sally and anyone else interested. Why not ask the police service for a short e.g. 5 year, rental on the police station for a very small rent for community use with an option to buy it at valuation if funding can be found. That way the demand for a community facility can be demonstrated, the police will not have the upkeep cost and can look forward to a better price and everyone will gain.
Wouldn't it have been simpler to ask the council to sub the Mowlem to the tune of £30,000 a year so they could use the restaurant and bar space for the purposes of the trust, i.e. improving the life of the inhabitants of Swanage, not that this is a valid object for a charity nowadays.
Sally Maltby said...
Look at what has been achieved at Stratford, Bidport, and nearer to home, Harmans Cross Village Hall.....to see what Community Centres can be given some energy and imagination.
Great to see a forward thinking suggestion, I don't know about everyone else on hear, but I'm sick of the complainers, the whingers, why don't they move to a ghost holdiay town elsewhere, they have no drive for Swanage to become successful. There is a pattern on this blog. Someone suggests something positive and someone knocks it down. Go live in a hole somewhere !!
If Sally thinks this is possible then support and something good may come of it.
Who are the trustees of the Mowlem, searched on the Mowlem website but no record. Does someone on here know.
6.01pm - spot on. I might not agree with the proposal being put forward in this instance but here we have someone with enthusiasm and energy coming up with ideas to try to improve the community for all. It is incredibly disappointing to read all the negativity (but of course it may be just one or two people - you never know when all comments are tagged anonymous. Top tip by the way Sally)
THE CHARITY IS MANAGED BY THOSE OF THE ELECTED MEMBERS
OF SWANAGE TOWN COUNCIL WHO ACCEPT THE OFFICE OF
CORPORATE TRUSTEE AND CONVENE TRUST MEETINGS AS AND
WHEN REQUIRED.
From the Charity Commission web site.
The Mowlem is constituted under the legislation for charitable status for village halls and community centres. Sally has proposed starting a second community centre in the same building.
A search of the charity commission site tells us the trustees are:
Mr PB Grover,Chartered Insurance Practitioner
Mr D W B Bale,Retired Chartered Systems Engineer,
MrsL M Burgess,Local Government Officer,
Mr S G Dumble,Retired Air Crew
Mr I Lomax,Estate Agent
Mrs G A Marsh,Councillor
Mr N D Ostafew, Builder.
Sally has not responded to any of the questions about demonstrating a demand for the proposed facility or what activities it would permit that are not possible at present. All we have from her is the claim that it is worth a few hundred thousand of our money because it has nice windows. Not wishing to loose any semblance of credibility I may have with the town council I really do not think I can write to them and ask for their support with our money on this basis.
As regards the accusation of negativity, I have outlined some of the points to which Sally will have to provide answers if this is to go forward. I would have thought that she would regard hammering out responses informally in this blog as worthwhile before putting her pitch to the council rather than putting up a document that can best be described as an early draft.
Finally can someone tell us how taking a prime site out of the town's tourist economy and using it as a species of village hall is going to help Swanage. The RC hall is used for a great many community activities of this sort but does anyone think the town as a whole would benefit if it was transplanted a few hundred yards to the seafront? Perhaps getting together with the diocese and chasing funds to develop it into a community centre would be a better way forward.
"THE CHARITY IS MANAGED BY THOSE OF THE ELECTED MEMBERS
OF SWANAGE TOWN COUNCIL WHO ACCEPT THE OFFICE OF
CORPORATE TRUSTEE AND CONVENE TRUST MEETINGS AS AND
WHEN REQUIRED."
Actually no. That is a different Mowlem trust. It is the one that controls the residue of the De Moulham Estate, i.e. the service roads and odd patches of green on it. It is now a cash generator but that is another story. Gloria Marsh is the only town councillor who is a Mowlem trustee. Confusing to say the least.
The Mowlem Trust's latest accounts are at http://www.charity-commission.gov.uk/ScannedAccounts/Ends86%5C0000243486_ac_20100331_e_c.pdf
Better to let Weatherspoons spend a million or so on upgrading the Mowlem restauant and bars in order to offer a facility that will be of real interest to residents and visitors at reasonable cost...... if only, I suspect there may be insufficient return for them.
Meanwhile, returning to trying to discuss this seriously, Sally say "Look at what has been achieved at Stratford, Bridport, and nearer to home, Harmans Cross Village Hall.."
I think there is a fallacy here. Surely things happen in these locations because people get on and organise them not because of the mere existence of the buildings. Spaces do not fill themselves. What grounds are there for thinking that the people who find fault with all of the existing 20 or so Swanage venues would get on and do anything if there was another one.
Have you thought of asking the owners of K's amusements or whatever it calls itself now whether they would permit the upper parts to be used as a community venue. They do not appear to have much use at the moment and have a wonderful view.
Sally
There are alot of people out here that do support your aims. I don't know the trustees,personally apart from Paul Grover. Sally and your friends could you arrange a meeting for interested people to meet with the trustees. I understand that one of the trustee members was a little upset that there were discussions about the Mowlem without their knowledge. If this was an open meeting of interested people and the trustees, there could be some positive outcomes.
Please suggest a date for this meeting.
If this venture was a true community project, as people have said it could be run in a similar foward thinking way as projects in Bridport. Community projects can include volunteers(because people like to be involved) The project could attract funding from the Chalk and Cheese project.
Chalk and Cheese have been keen to encourage groups/people in Purbeck to apply for this funding. We seem to be a little slow in coming forward in this end of Purbeck. But things are gradually beginning to happen.
The more I think about a trustee nursing injured feeling the crosser I become. The Mowlem trust exists to improve our lives. It's instrument for doing this is the provision of a theatre/reading room/community centre. The building is a means to an end, not an end in itself. The end is the improvement of our lives. It is enjoined by the Charity Commission to consult us on what it should be doing with these assets to improve our lives and also to communicate with us in general. It does not do any of this. Instead it thinks that we are supposed to approach it on bended knee as supplicants with modest and respectful requests. It is not our role to do this. It is the trustee's role to get out and find what we want and how we would like our lives improved.
We have now got to the stage where some of the community are so dissatisfied Mowlem trust that they propose setting up a second organisation with much the same aims, even suggesting it operate from the same building. What is the reaction of the trustees? Do they say, how about a meeting on Monday morning to see what we can do together? Not a bit of it. A third party relays on the fact that one is feeling a little hurt because someone else did not take the initiative in talking to them.
They should know exactly what people think of what they offer and how satisfied they are. They should meet regularly with users and prospective users of the facilities and talk about quality improvement. Perhaps the success of other venues mentioned in one post derives from the willingness of those running them to do these things, to engage with the community and to ask themselves how they could do better.
If the trustees would rather meet the community on neutral ground I would be happy to arrange a venue and time. I might even manage tea and biscuits.
In short the trust exists to improve the quality of life of the inhabitants of Swanage through the provision of a theatre and reading room. Many of us would like the trust to accept this entails an obligation to actively do some improving by making use of these facilities rather than sit back and say "here are a theatre and a reading room, now get on with it yourselves" I also think this is how the charity commission would see it.
They have the right to rent out the facility when it is not being used by the trust itself which suggests an intention that the trust would be using it to improve our conditions at least some of the time rather than acting as a booking facility and expecting third parties to do the improving. In practice all they use the theatre for themselves is showing films.
I have heard that the Mowlem is a 'closed' charity which means they are accountable to nobody, AGM's etc.They cannot apply for funding as they would not be required to account for it. They seem to have been loosing money for years and the place certainly looks like it. I had a wonderful bombastic email from the Trustees accusing us of libel for daring to criticise.
Swanage needs to up its game in order to attract more people and this could be the way to do it.
It cannot be up to one person, the various councils need to take an interest and maybe take it over - they could apply for funding. There are apparantley lots of similar buildings in the UK set up as 'closed'charities and not fulfilling their original intentions - somebody needs to take legal advice
here on how to change a charity.
The trustees are impossible to talk to and do not attend any meetings I am told and they - or at least one of them - is there for life.
I had a wonderful bombastic email from the Trustees accusing us of libel for daring to criticise.
Please share it with us.
I am saddened but unsurprised that you may have inadvertently given the trustees the opportunity to put up a smoke screen and avoid discussing the substantive issues. They have always succeeded in stonewalling in the past and I very much doubt they read what is being said about them particularly carefully. It looks indicative of their attitude to the views of the Swanage community.
The question remains, does the trust do what it was set up to do? There is no mileage in complaining they are not doing something they were not established for. This depends on whether the governing document and charity law impose on them the duty of actively arranging uses of their reading room and theatre to improve the quality of life of the people of Swanage or whether they need be no more than a letting landlord of these facilities and secondly if it is the latter whether they are obliged to actively seek users.
The trust has raised an interesting question. Has their reputation suffered as a result of what Sally said. Since they take no steps to research how well or badly they are regarded in the community they serve they are hardly in a position to know one way or another.
Sally could reply welcoming the opportunity to have the trust's reputation with the public examined in open court. I have never met anyone who holds them in high regard. The best I have heard is that they do a good job but unfortunately it is the wrong job. Since Sally' circle consists of exactly the sort of people who want to do things to improve the quality of life of the people of Swanage their views should carry some weight. BTW You can't damage a poor reputation.
She could also demand the resignation of the sender of the email for trying to stifle debate.
www.charity-commission.gov.uk/Publications/rs11.aspx is about how charities should handle complaints and says they should have a complaints procedure which can "demonstrate that the charity operates openly and transparently and is accountable to its users, other stakeholders and the public in general."
and:
"An effective charity will have a clear definition of what it will regard as a complaint. People will not always state overtly that they are making a complaint. A good procedure will help a charity to recognise, acknowledge and explore the reasons for any expression of dissatisfaction, whether or not these turn out to be justified."
hence Sally's remarks should have been regarded as a complaint and investigated.
Here is another extract:
"One of the hallmarks of an effective charity is that it will generally be accountable and transparent and, in particular, that it 'welcomes both positive and challenging feedback from its stakeholders and has well-publicised, effective and timely procedures for dealing with complaints about the charity and its activities. These explain rights to complain and appeal and give details of the process and likely timescales"
Its hard to see how a charity that ignores this advice can expect to enjoy a good reputation.
All good stuff and I'm slightly heartnened by the debate.
The point seems to be here though that they are in some way outside conventional charity law in that they are not accountable to anybody to justify their actions . Presumably some sort of charity law does apply but this 'closed' status is something I didn't know about.
So there is no need for them to care a jot about what any of us says.....they don't seem to care about their reputation anyway so what to do?
There is a huge range of charities that operate without public intervention. Public schools, religious bodies come to mind straight away. It looks like you are thinking only of membership organisations.
What do you want to call the trust to account for? Is it reasonable to expect the owners of a theatre to produce the plays? The trust sees itself as the owner of a theatre. They are not impresarios. Arguably if their end is improving the quality of life of the inhabitants of Swanage with the theatre as the means their role should expand. I suspect some trustees would welcome this but others would not. Their annual reports to the commission make it clear that those at the top see their mission primarily as providing a facility for amateurs, youth and school.
I was sceptical about the original proposal for the simple reason that dedicating a space to a purpose is a completely different thing to arranging the activities you think should happen in that space. I would have thought the general run of criticism of the Mowlem trust for what does not happen there demonstrates that having the space is not in itself the answer. Your proposal was silent on what would be done and who would do it. Can you put forward a proposal that outlines these so we begin to get an idea of what we would get for our money..
Sally
Are you able to say what the Mowlem space would be used for.
Supportive of something more forward thinking, but not sure what you have in mind.
Hope that the restaurant space could be leased to some inspirational cateres and could coincide with theatre opening times
Dear Mr Bale and trustees of the Mowlem.
The Arts/business/catering/local producers community of Swanage would like to arrange a meeting with the trustees of the Mowlem to discuss how the Mowlem could move on a positive way.
Please could the trustees suggest a date for this meeting.
Yours sincerely
There is no reason why the body which constitutes the landlord of a building has to be the body which arranges the events which take place in the building. If there are people who have ideas about what they would like to happen at the Mowlem they should get on and book the place and organise the events. Surely the whole point about the trust is that they make it available for precisely this. Even if the council bought the restaurant lease and it was made available as a venue someone has to do this.
Hope that the restaurant space could be leased to some inspirational cateres and could coincide with theatre opening times
Something we would all agree with but it begs the question of whether, if you were a restaurateur, you would want your landlord telling you what to put on the menu and when to open. Would anyone buy a lease offered on such a basis?
Even if the council bought the restaurant lease and it was made available as a venue someone has to do this.
Ok! lets do it then. Sally name the day.
Most people in Swanage don't know who the trustees of the Mowlem are, it would be good to put names to faces.
It's not really up to us to say exactly what should be done here - its up to a bit of imagination and enterprise by both the Council and people of Swanage. We can of course offer lots of ideas which might or might not be thought too elitist.
Swanage basically needs to up its game and this is what this site could do - apart from righting the odd 'wrong' along the way however expedient they might seem to be.
The site should probably be taken back into town ownership and, depending on feasability/buisiness studies a use found that can profit 'the inhabitants of Swanage' in various ways.
We would urge anyone that agrees here to write to the Town Council before it debates out proposition on 21st March to support the basic principle at least.
Some of the things in this thread are beyond parody. Swanage Town Council using imagination? An oxymoron if ever there was one. Sally, you are one of the people of Swanage and an imaginative one at that.If you can't suggest a calendar of activities who else can.
What else do we have. The question of who the trustees are. I am completely bewildered that anyone thinks this matters. If I go to hear the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra at Lighthouse is my enjoyment enhanced if I know what the trustees look like? Am I any better off if I know who the trustees of Bridport Art Centre are when I see paintings in their gallery? Lastly, why stop at suggesting the public tell the Mowlem what the owner of the restaurant should have on the menu. Why not make representations to the trustees about the flavours of icecream in Mr Forte's parlour?
It matters in Swanage who the trustees are, and, of course, it shouldn't.
Well, I never thought I would have much sympathy for the trustees but I am starting to get convinced. They provide us with a theatre and a community room which any of us can book without having to give a thought to providing the building. Any of us can get together some like minded people and put on a play or a show, in a real theatre, not a village hall. We can book a string quartet in or show paintings. And what to we do? we complain bitterly that the trustees have not done it all for us. We have a pretty much unique opportunity to construct our own cultural lives in this and other local venues but we think it is always someone else's job do do the doing.
No, you've missed the point here....
At a time when councils throughout the country are slashing services, sacking staff and divesting themselves of money costing commitments you have blithely proposed that Swanage Town Council shells out £100,000 for a restaurant lease and commits itself to spending £30,000 a year in rent in order to make two rooms available as "community venues" but I am the one who has missed the point?
There is no longer some money bags rich uncle in the public sector to put in buckets of dosh for something that looks like a good idea. If STC owned the Mowlem it would now be desperately casting around for a way to get rid of it or simply closing it down and selling the building, but again I am the one who has missed the point.
The Mowlem was set up in its present form precisely to insulate it from public funding problems and to make it immune to public service cuts and as libraries and other cultural institutions round the country close we should be profoundly grateful that it is not controlled by the council.
The best case senario here is that the Tustees resign and that the Mowlem reverts to the Council.
An accountable and enterprising steering committee would then be formed and we would all go forward to a rosy new dawn.
The worst case, nothing changes.
"the Mowlem reverts to the Council"
A dozen meddling Tories put in charge of an arts centre?
The trust was given its modern form as a side effect of local government reorganisation in the 1970s expressly with the purpose of keeping a Swanage asset out of the hands of the district council. No thought was given to setting up an arts or cultural organisation. It was entirely about keeping control of the building in the parish. If you think it is time to move on from this set up an arts delivery organisation and talk to the trustees about taking over the day to day operation leaving them to do their job of providing the physical infra-structure. Managing a building and organising events in it are totally different activities.
I suggest a group consisting of two representatives of the trust, put forward on the basis of their interest in the arts, a nominee of a major arts organisation, a couple of people with professional experience in managing arts events, someone from Bournemouth Arts university and some representation of existing regular users. There is nothing to stop anyone concerned about the use of the Mowlem getting on and inviting people to join such a group. I would also suggest asking people prominent in the arts with a local connection to be patrons, for example Sir Anthony Caro who has a house in Worth. Their names should lend a bit of gravity.
Brilliant - spot on!
"the Mowlem reverts to the Council"
Would it? Why. There are rules about how a charity can dispose of property. Would the council want it? Thats doubtful. Since it would need to be over the dead bodies of various trustees how to you suggest arranging their demise? I can see an Agatha Christie coming on. Perhapss it could launch the revamped theatre.
The posters who asked who the trustees are clearly do not bother to visit the Mowlem since a list of names and occupations is on a noticeboard on the outside of the building. Its hard to envisage what else could be done short of requiring them to appear in the turning circle there on Saturday afternoons to be put in the stocks.
9.21
Again a negative tone, no wonder Swanage is so backward thinking. Off to your hole.
"the Mowlem reverts to the Council"
A dozen meddling Tories put in charge of an arts centre?
The meddling Tories are not beyond acting on behalf of the community. More recently STC has acted in a more gutsy way. Stop criticising and say something positive.
"Again a negative tone, no wonder Swanage is so backward thinking. Off to your hole."
Eh? Whats the harm in being negative about posters who don't bother to find out facts for themselves a bit. Never mind. Lets look forward. Here we are with a splendid little theatre run by a group of people who want nothing more than for users to come forward and put things on there. Lets be positive and use it and not wait for the trust to do things it was not established to do.
Can we ask a couple of questions?
What happened to Sea Salt. Why did it close.
What happened to the manager of the theatre, why did he resign ?
Thats very curious. The Mowlem's about us page says only this of staff "the full-time staff Theatre Technician is Thomas Curtis.
He is supported by a team of front-of-house staff, projectionists and technical staff."
No mention of a manager/administrator, the latter being the last job title I saw. Absolutely no body tasked with maximising use of the place of course.
There were very mixed reports about Sea Salt. I heard that the chef quit and they tried to carry on regardless which looks to have been optimistic. The reviews on Tripadvisor.co.uk are almost all very negative and along the lines "never again"
Returning for a moment to the subject of this thread, being able to have a drink in the bar in the interval or after the show was very much part of the "evening out" experience and you do expect theatres to have one. It would diminish the Mowlem if it lost the bar and restaurant for ever. Having a meal in a place with a good view was also valued my a lot of people.
It looks like the fate of Sea Salt may demonstrate that the success of Swanage restaurants is increasingly going to to be predicated on getting good user reviews on the web.This marks a reversal of the situation for so many years whereby they could rely on visitors stumbling in for the first time when they came to Swanage and frequently offer mediocre food and service with impunity..Is this the equivalent of word of mouth in the global village do you think? Good but pricey seems to get more praise than cheap and cheerful in the reviews.
When the lease was for sale a few years ago we had some discussion on here with someone who was interested in operating it as an Indian restaurant. I wonder why he faded out? I think an Asian seafood restaurant would do really well so long as it eschewed the standard menus offered by the other ethnic restaurants in town. Swanage bay mackerel makes a brilliant curry for example.
The Ocean Bay Restaurant is for sale. A snip at £1,375,000 for the freehold. Alternatively the East Bar could be yours for £795,000 freehold. Any good as community centres?
source: http://www.estatesgazette.com/propertylink/browse/leisure-swanage-for_sale.htm
On the website:
The Friends of the Mowlem run independent to the Trustees to arrange social events, assist in fund-raising and promote the Theatre and the Charity. It produces regular newsletters. The annual subscription is £3 for individuals and £6 for families.
Application forms and more details can be obtained from the box office or telephoning 01929 422239
It would be interesting to hear from former trustees about why they are no longer serving. One quipped that he thought two years banging his head on a wall was enough.
The staff of Bridport Art Centre, an establishment with a similar turnover, consists of:
Director Polly Gifford
Programme Manager Margie Barbour
Marketing Manager Tamsin Loudon
Administrator Dee Fenton
Box Office Jill Beed
Learning co ordinator Kate Wilson
Contrast this with the Mowlem's situation of no professional management at all. No wonder so mush more happens at Bridport.
I interrupted myself and posted. I meant to add that Bridport Arts Centre aims are to:
provide inspiration to artists and audiences through a vibrant and diverse programme of arts activities
integrate our work with that of partners in the locality such as schools, other arts organisations and community groups
initiate and promote new work in
contemporary visual and performing arts
provide a high quality service to all Centre users
offer entertainment to and enhance the quality of life for the people of Bridport and West Dorset
The only one of these that is tied to the building is the one about a high level of service. All the others can be achieved by an organisation that uses other people's buildings.
Would be a shame for the restaurant to go. Just needs a good team of chefs and front of house staff to run it. Keep it simple and I reckon it would work. Plus get rid of the name the sea salt.
Put anything there other than another 'community centre' that will no doubt be underused and a massive waste of time, effort, resources and money.
Make it something decent for the whole town, and for holiday makers or 'grockels' as some of you may call them, to enjoy and use.
A decent restuarant, or maybe even another cinema screen would be my suggestions.
Another screen, and actually showing new release films would bring people in, who would probably stay in the town for a bit before or after and spending some money.
Obviously I haven't thought it through, and there are probably many logistical, strategical, financial and other reasons that a second screen couldn't be put in.
But it beats the idea for another community centre.
Converting the circle into a small cinema would be another approach. This was a popular approach some years ago when large cinemas were being split up.
There is no reason why Swanage can't be as successful as places elsewhere. Please people who are making decisions on behalf of Swanage, look further afield at 'Bridport', Lyme Regis. Swanage has so much going for it, but it seems stuck somehow.
Its time to move on and become unstuck. What plans to the trustees have in mind for the future of the Mowlem.
You can ask at the parish assemply on thursday 24th. My guess is the trustees plan to go on providing a reading room and theatre for the improvement of the lives of the people of Swanage. They have never had any plans for anything else and will always maintain that what goes on in the reading room and library are nothing to do with them. Another question you may like to ask is what plans they have to consult the people on how they would like their lives improved as advised by the charity commission.
Visited the Mowlem this afternoon, the posters in the window and the general presentation of the advertising looks a little tatty. It wouldn't take much to tidy it all up a bit.
Who owns the freehold of the bars?
The Mowlem Trust owns the freehold of the whole building. Rental income from the shops, bars and restaurant is its source of funds.
Can anyone who was there tell us what happened? I gather the Council said they could not consider it: I don't know why not...
Strange that nobody has pointed to the parallel between the events in North Africa and the middle east and the Mowlem. The latter are unelected and claim to he empowered to run the thing for the benefit of the inhabitants. Like an oil state they have an income that makes them independent of the wishes of the population. Perhaps we should sit outside chanting "Saudi Arabia awaits you David Bale" and hope the trustees go into exile
The Mowlem Trust owns the freehold of the whole building. Rental income from the shops, bars and restaurant is its source of funds.
So is it the Mowlem Trust that is selling the Bar and restaurant, or is it the previous owners.
What do you get for 110,000
Could a group of visionery people, artists, caterers, business people get together and be shown around by Oliver Miles and the trustees.
I read that the trustees have control over how the bars/restaurant is run, is this true.
How do we make contact with the trustees?
Sending an email or leaving a telephone message to the Mowlem does not achieve a reply.
If the trustees own the Mowlem, what is stopping them putting in an interrim manager to keep the bar and restaurant open.
I'm still not clear about this, why don't the trustees employ someone to run the Mowlem as they employed a manager for the theatre. There are many local people who are looking for catering/bar businesses to run, who could do amazing things but dont have 110,000.
The names of the trustees are listed on the noticeboard outside the Mowlem. If they do not respond to letters or phone calls it should not be difficult to contact them at home or work. Look them up in the phone book. One is a member of the town council another works in the town centre. A little googling might help.
If it was a private company would you expect to conduct a dialogue with the directors about how they run it? The Mowlem receives nothing from public funds and is to all intents and purposes a private business apart from spending any surplus its activities generate on providing a reading room.
You might well think that as the purpose of the charity is to improve our lives it would ask us how we would like our lives improved and organise the provision of this improvement in a democratic manner, but, and it is a big but, they are not obliged to, just as Eton College is not obliged to hold elections to the charitable trust that owns the place.
In the case of the trustee who is also a councilor you could write to her and copy the letter to other members of the council for information if you think it contains issues of which you think they should be aware.
Help I am sooo frustrated at the posts here!!!!
It is obvious that no-one here has any commercial sense what so ever! or the basic understanding of a commercial lease!!!!! It is the tenants who are selling on the benefit of the remaining lease and if it is like most commercial leases the trust will have no input in to the proceedings at this stage, nor the right to interefer with someones private business dealings or the running of their business- they (the Trust)are the landlords. The trust are not selling the lease nor do they have the right (i am guessing here only!) to enter the premises without the tenants permission.
It can't be fair to lay the blame for all of the town's woes at their door!!(The trust that is) if any thing get angry at Classisc Jurrassic Inns they are the business owners who have closed their business down!
James B
I agree, assuming the lease has not been returned and that the trust has not entered the premises in consequence of the tenants not following the covenants.
Some posters assume an omnipotence that can be exercised by the trust and the town council that is entirely lacking in reality. BTW nothing comes up for "Classisc Jurrassic Inns" on a companies house search, even with it spelt correctly.
The fact remains that the trust is there to improve the lives of the inhabitants of Swanage and the charity commission think those inhabitants are entitled to be consulted about how they would like their existence made better and this does not happen.
Sorry for my spelling mistake!
I have double checked a receipt i have (sad but I keep them all for my accountant!) and it reads "Classisc Jurrassic Inns Ltd T/as Sea Salt" at the bottom.
Perhaps the company has folded or is in the process of being struck off the register at companies house!?! who knows, I'm not that into this that I would take the time to search!
I feel that there are two sides to this, one is the sorry situation with the Restaurant & the other how the Mowlem is run.
Sea Salt we can do nothing about - I can't afford to buy it - can you?? and I would be angry as a tax payer have the local council purchase it for a small minority and their desire to enjoy the light and large windows for their artist hobby! even if it was in the short term whilst they found funding! good luck with that in this climate!!
The other - how old is the Mowlem and how out of date are the original aims / mission statement as laid out with the charities commission that is oft referred to here??
Again how easy is it to change them once they are laid down?? If it was easy wouldn't they have done it or are you inferring that they are even too lazy / uninterested in the trust to do this??
I heard a few years back that the Charities commission is the devil itself to deal with at times, but again I have no personal experience of them (the commisison that is).
There appears to me that there is a wide variety of live theatre, professional & amateur, recent release films (ok not the week they come out)and what I think is called TIE theatre in education !??! (I heard the other week that my neighbours daughter's school were part of three or four groups that went to a subsidised performance of some sort during the day - possibly puppet theatre with a serious meaning lesson behind it?? not awfully sure) and there is ballet occassionally as well.
For me it is a local facility and it is far cheaper to wait a week or two to see a film in town that to drive to the ABC in Bournemouth, pay for the ferry or the additional petrol to drive around and then pay for parking!! And at the end of the evening it is only a few minutes walk home!! Great to have this on our doorsteps.
Again and I am geussing that there has to be a financial decission on what films and shows are brought in to the theatre as some will bring in big audiences and other really good shows might only have a limited potential audience so are they viable etc
I agree that the Mowlem is a pig ugly building but I wasn't born when it was built and had no input into it.
Perhaps some of the "posters" here should write a note or speak to the staff on duty and leave some suggestions of what they would like to see show / film wise and this must eventually filter back to the trustees.
This is what I intend to do - I am heading back to See "The King's Speech" for the second time next week - the stalls were full the night I went last time and I am sure there are bits I missed or didn't take in fully!!
Postman could we possibly split the threads here? into "let's lambast the Mowlem" & "what should happen to Sea Salt" I do not want to be making fun of anyone personally or groups, merely putting a slant on things to make people stop and re-read some of the earlier posts as they can be perseived in different ways at different times.
Yours
James B
A generally happy resident of Swanage
It needs to be something for everyone, locals and visitors. (So that rules yet another underused community centre out)
Whatever it is, it should be something that keeps people in the town before or after using it, and therefore spending some money in our shops, pubs and restuarants.
To many people are adverse to progress in this town, and either don't want change, or fear it.
This stubborn, introverted attitude will cost Swanage.
The governing documents are crucial as they set out what the trust is there to do. There are two schemes dated 1963 and 1973 respectively so they are not particularly ancient or particularly modern for that matter. The objects sre:
"LIBRARY AND READING ROOM FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE INHABITANTS OF SWANAGE AND IN PARTICULAR FOR USE FOR MEETINGS, LECTURES AND CLASSES OR FOR OTHER FORMS OF RECREATION AND LEISURE TIME OCCUPATION WITH THE OBJECT OF PROVIDING FURTHER EDUCATION AND IMPROVING THE CONDITIONS OF LIFE FOR THE SAID INHABITANTS."
Nothing there about running a theatre although that shows up as an activity rather than an object. Come to your own conclusions about whether this is up to date. Why should the trustees want to change this I wonder. They are doing exactly what it says on the tin. Providing a reading room and as a considerable bonus, a theatre.
However, look at things like the standard of posters and publicity material displayed, the decline in professional use of the theatre to two weeks a year, the fact that films are often booked too late to be listed in monthly magazines, the lack of consultation with the inhabitants of Swanage, general lack of communication, problems experienced by would be bookers of the theatre and reach your own conclusions about the way the place is run.
Unfortunately there is nothing in the objects saying the theatre should be well run. If the trustees want to run it badly that is their prerogative.
If you want to support in a positive way join the Friends of the Mowlem, or book the room or theatre for whatever is your fancy.
Too much time is wasted whinging and whining, do something positive, the Mowlem is there for the community of Swanage to use.
Lets hope any new managers of the Pub and restaurant are inspirational thinkers.
Have the owners of the Mill Bakery - Lyme Regis and new branch in Dorchester been contacted. For food with attitude that is home grown and local.
Right, now where is that form to become a friend.
Post a Comment