Hundreds of people have shared their thoughts, opinions and ideas on how The Coro in Ulverston can be shaped for the future.
An engagement launched at the start of September included on-line and paper surveys, events, activities and workshops, a public meeting and sessions with community groups.
Now a second public meeting is being held to provide initial feedback from the engagement and to outline next steps in the process.
Anyone who would like to attend can join the meeting which is being held between 7pm and 9pm next Tuesday, 21 October, at The Coro.
The session will be an opportunity to hear about some of the key themes emerging from the engagement and want happens next with a National Heritage Lottery Fund application.
Westmorland and Furness Council’s community teams went to great lengths to include the views of as many people as possible during the recent engagement.
‘Visioning’ workshops were held with several key stakeholders, including arts and cultural organisations, businesses, Ulverston Town Council, Town Team and voluntary sector groups and information and surveys were provided to Coro users and residents’ organisations.
Some of the more creative approaches included setting up a market stall in the town centre to gather views - with artist Mollie Ray depicting people’s ideas in a comic art display - parking a double decker bus bar outside The Coro to capture the opinions of people attending a sold-out comedy night, having a suggestions board in The Coro foyer and connecting with schools, youth and community groups ranging from blood donors to a local food project.
In September 2024, Westmorland and Furness Council’s Cabinet made the decision to permanently re-locate the Ulverston Library in The Coro, which is owned and operated by the council.
As part of that decision, Cabinet committed to work closely with the community to explore how The Coro’s role as a home for arts, culture and community services and activities could be developed alongside the new library provision.
The council has already identified an initial estimated £2million investment along with £500,000 from the Borderlands Place Programme, but now there is an opportunity to secure even more funding for The Coro project, with potential additional funding of up to £3.2million from the National Heritage Lottery Fund (NHLF), subject to a successful application.
If secured, this additional funding would enable a more ambitious re-development programme to be realised. In addition to housing the library, this could enable The Coro to further expand its arts, culture and community offer.
The recently completed engagement was seeking people’s views on how these investments could best support the community’s ambitions for the future of The Coro.
A spokesperson for Westmorland and Furness Council said: “We’re investing a significant amount of money in The Coro and it will be undergoing a programme of refurbishment to ensure it remains a vibrant, inspirational venue at the heart of Ulverston’s cultural and community life.
“The council is committed to working closely with the community to really understand how people want The Coro to be shaped and developed going forward and it has been great to see so many people contributing their thoughts and ideas.
“The meeting next Tuesday evening (21 October) is a chance for people to come along and find out more about what the engagement has told us and what will be happening next. All are welcome.’’