Stuart WoodArts, entertainment and conference centre Fairfield Halls, located in Croydon, has delayed its re-opening until June 2019.
The venue closed in July 2016 for a major two-year refurbishment, but the charity that ran the venue, Herron Fisher, went into administration just three days later.
Since then, the refurbishment has been subject to costly delays and over-runs. In July, a building Croydon council needed as part of the refurbishment was sold to a private developer.
Construction work did not begin until September 2017, 14 months after the venue closed. It was scheduled to re-open by the end of 2018, but this has now been pushed back to June 2019.
Graphic designer Oscar Spinks was working at Fairfield Halls when it closed in 2016. He commented: “I honestly felt like the Fairfield was in serious need of a makeover. The carpet was held together with duct tape and there was a serious mouse problem.
“The theatre also had very poor marketing for these events, with big names often not being as busy as they should be. They also didn’t have the money to pay off people’s redundancy.”
Access also spoke to another member of staff, wishing to remain anonymous, who was previously employed at Fairfield. They said: “Before the close the council promised £30m, but are refusing to cough it up. This means the new building will have no air-con, the theatre will not be resized as originally planned, and rather than new seats, they will just cover old ones up.
“Many of the staff expected deadlines and push backs before we left. It is no surprise considering most of the first year of close no work was done.”