Jobs set to be cut at Spalding's South Holland Centre

A consultation is under way with staff at the South Holland Centre, with a view to cutting the number of roles at the venue.

The full details of the plan are not yet known but the Lincolnshire Free Press understands that 22 roles at the South Holland Centre could be reduced to seven.

It is thought that some staff may hold more than one role - and that the figures do not directly relate to the number of people involved.

The district council, which runs the Spalding theatre, said it did not think it was appropriate to comment on the plans while the staff consultation was running - with talks due to continue for the next couple of weeks.

We understand that despite the potential reduction in roles, there are no plans to shut the centre.

However, users fear that cutting roles will eventually narrow the scope of what’s offered by the arts facility.

The South Holland Centre has been closed since the start of the pandemic - with council bosses recently announcing that it will reopen the venue for a programme of films during the school holidays as part of its summer plan for the town centre.

Since it shut, the venue has had two rounds of funding from the Arts Council.

In October it was handed £170,860 from the Culture Recovery Fund to provide chance for a ‘viable, sustainable and resilient long term future’.

Then, in April this year, a second round of funding from the same pot provided a further £84,543.