Halstead Empire Theatre £54k re-roofing project now underway

The roof of Halstead's Empire Theatre has been "deteriorating steadily" over the past few years.

With minor repairs to loose slates and more major costs when water gets in, it has been costing at least £500 a year to patch up the roof.

The town council wants to replace the theatre roof and was hoping to secure funding.

It applied for a National Lottery grant to help with the work, but the bid was unsuccessful.

The council previously revealed costs have risen “significantly” since the Lottery application was made, and now come with a £54,000 price-tag, which will be paid for using funds already earmarked by the council.

At a previous town council meeting, councillor Andy Munday said: "I have personally been trying to get this project off the ground for many years and now is the time to really put this to action.

Councillor Janet Atkinson said she was "pleased to see the work is finally being done", before the plans were unanimously agreed upon.

Now, the project is underway, with scaffolding going up at the Butler Road building.

REFURB UNDERWAY: The Empire Theatre will get a newly-slated roof (Image: N/A)

A Halstead Town Council spokesman said: “The town council has just begun a major project which has been in the making for several years.

“The building is around 100 years old and is now home to many worthwhile events for the community, including the dementia-friendly cinema and dementia-friendly choir, as well as films for children and streaming of live shows.

“The slate roof has been deteriorating over the last few years due to its age.

“Following an unsuccessful National Lottery application, the town council has now embarked on this major repair, funding it from its own reserves earmarked for the project.

“The new slate roof should be in place within the next few weeks.

“The town council apologises in advance for any disruption this might cause to the neighbours or to users of the theatre. However, disruption should be minimal.”