MATLOCK BATH: Grand Pavilion wins heritage lottery bid

Funding will be used to tell the fascinating tales of the Grand Pavilion itself as well as the buildings – which have now been lost. It will cover stories of visitors to Matlock Bath; from of Kings and Queens to motorbikers riding in over the last one hundred years.

The Grand Pavilion Ltd was set up two years ago to re-open the Grand Pavilion in Matlock Bath. They plan to turn it back into a Theatre and Arts Centre. This followed a year-long campaign to find a use for the empty building.

The charity has managed to re-open the building as it is. They recently hosted the sell-out Half Man Half Biscuit concert and the Derbyshire Open Arts weekend. The next event, just started, is the British Wildlife Photography Awards exhibition from July 6 until September 1.

A number of funding bids have been made in the past, but this will be the largest successful bid to date. It builds a relationship with the Heritage Lottery Fund, which the charity hopes will lead to a more long-term relationship.

Pavilion chairman, Gregor Macgregor, said: “It has been a frustrating business with the other funding bodies that we have approached. They all have rules and it is difficult for us to match these to what we want to do.

“With the Heritage Lottery Fund, though, we have had an excellent relationship from the start. They have come to see the building and made helpful suggestions.”

Heritage Director, Charles Beresford, added: “We were one of the first groups to be invited to talk about a new funding stream. This could provide most of the finance required to renovate the building and realise our dream of fully re-opening a modernised building.

“We will be making an application for this fund in August and if this second bid is successful we will then be able to start our restoration work.”