Investments of £5k sought to secure future of town arts centre

A POPULAR community arts centre is offering people the chance to invest in its future.

The Foxlowe Arts Centre, in Leek, is looking for investments of £5,000 – or any number of multiples of £5,000 – for an annual return of two per cent, in a bid to pay off the centre’s £450,000 mortgage.

Now the Foxlowe Loan Scheme has been launched in a bid to pay off the current high interest mortgage loan for the premises.

Pledges to the loans scheme currently stand at £355,000 – leaving another £95,000 yet to be secured.

Since its launch in 2011 the community arts centre has gone from strength to strength.

Chairman of the Trustees, Chris Thompson, said: “Since the town hall was demolished in the 1980s and the closure of The Swan, there was a lack of performance space and the Foxlowe has admirably filled the void with A list stars such as Jack Dee and Alan Carr recently performing at the Foxlowe.

“The arts centre also hosts two galleries, art workshops, creative hub studios, new music and cover bands, the Gateway Shed, a community café giving opportunities to students with special educational needs, cinema, workshops, comedy, theatre, weddings and functions and community events with all profits going back into the arts and restoring the building.

“This scheme has already proven popular and we only have a limited amount of investments left of between five years to eight years and are hoping to launch the Foxlowe Loan Scheme on August 1.”

* Anyone interested in investing can email peter@ kent-baguley.co.uk, or visit foxloweartscentre.org.uk.