Dear all, on February 1st this year the plans to establish a Horsham Folk Arts Centre were approved by a specially formed sub-committee of Horsham District Council The Committee conducted detailed deliberations evaluating 3 bids for use of Horshams Old Town Hall which the Council wished to outsource, and recommended the Folk Arts Centre. This was the culmination of hundreds of hours work drawing up the Financial and Business Assessment which was overwhlmingly supported by 51% of readers in a poll conducted by the local West Sussex County Times. The plan also included the establishment of a Horsham Folk Festival, which as we know from the 'Impact of Festivals Report' on the Folk Arts England website, would be of huge economic benefit to the town as a whole. Folk Arts England News (Spring edition) also carried an article about the initiative and Horsham's unique connection to folk history e.g. Lucy Broadwood.
We have now learned from a recent Council report that a certain section of the Council now want to go back on the pledge to put the sub-committee recommendation to Cabinet and a full Council Meeting, and recommend the vague notion of turning the historic building into another restaurant (of which there are many in Horsham already).
Of course, the tourism potential of a Folk Arts Centre is enormous, whilst a restaurant would have little overall economic impact on the town.
I am therefore asking individuals and bodies in the folk network locally, regionally and nationally to e-mail the leader of the Council and show their support for the Folk Arts Centre. The Cabinet Committee meets this Thursday 29th June at 5.30 pm. to decide so time is short. The e-mail address to write to is:
elizabeth.kitchen@horsham.gov.uk
Many thanks in anticipation of your urgent help.
Kind regards, Martin Jeremiah Project Manager - Horsham Folk Arts Centre martin@martin-jeremiah.co.uk
This is my website The FG that I built in a fury of excitement when we first moved here sometime in 2004. I'd been a frequent visitor for a while before that so I am technically one of those Down From Londons you get nowadays. The site was a lot more dynamic with a calendar of events and voting for best venues and things, and I know it was a useful reference for those who were moving here. Now I've moved out of Folkestone again (though just to Hythe) it doesn't get as much attention as it used to. Ironic really as The town is becoming the exciting place we always thought it was about to become. My name is not Gerald BTW, this comes from a fake newspaper in an episode of Brasseye or something, the Portsmouth Gerald, and how there is a local newspaper here called the Folkestone Herald. Puns like this are great aren't they? Do get in touch if you have anything to offer, email anythign @ this domain, or try @folkestone or @pauly on Twitter.