The Arts Centre now features a large new building with a number of newly created spaces including three digital auditoria with high-end digital projection and sound, as well as a ground floor gallery to exhibit contemporary art, sculpture and photography.

The building also features a new foyer offering a larger, more environmentally friendly and attractive entrance for visitors, in addition to a new restaurant and bar to ensure the complete experience. The project also involved the refurbishment and upgrading of the existing building.

The £25.5m investment in Warwick Arts Centre was supported by an award of £4.2m in National Lottery funding from Arts Council England and is a key venue in Coventry’s year of UK City of Culture in 2021.

Designed by Ellis Williams Architects with Bond Bryan as delivery architect and project managed by Turner & Townsend, the project aims to make Warwick Arts Centre the region’s leading cultural centre and a place where creativity, collaboration and innovation thrive. 

Throughout the project, the equivalent of £1.8m of social value return on investment was delivered to local people by way of a number of community initiatives. Over 17,000 hours was spent supporting local young people with work experience opportunities, as well as 20 weeks with the University’s civil engineering students.

With the project beginning in 2019, followed by the closure of leisure, arts and entertainment venues for much of the last two years, the venue is set to welcome audiences for shows beginning from October.  

“We cannot wait for our audiences to enjoy the experience and make new memories as they engage with the exceptional range of arts and culture that has always been our hallmark, including in our new spaces – such as our new three screen cinema, restaurant and the reimagined Mead Gallery,” said Doreen Foster, director of Warwick Arts Centre.