The City of London Corporation has agreed £25 million ($32 million) in funding to start the first phase of the "Barbican Renewal Program." The project will transform underused spaces within the arts and conference venue for new creative use, while also investing in its existing venues and public spaces, and improving technical capabilities at the site.
Members of the City Corporation’s Policy and Resources Committee approved the money to develop elements of a long-term master plan, undertake further consultation, and deliver early systems and infrastructure work to boost the center’s operational and environmental performance over the next two years.It comes after the City Corporation launched its Destination City program to build a seven-day-a-week leisure destination for U.K. and international visitors, workers and residents.
Recognized as an icon of Brutalist style, the Barbican Centre is one of the U.K.’s greatest post-war buildings, attracting almost 2 million visitors annually. The City Corporation is the Barbican Centre’s founder and principal funder. Major improvements will be made to the building’s environmental performance under the City Corporation’s Climate Action Strategy, which commits it to achieving net zero carbon status in its own operations by 2027. The project will sensitively preserve the complex, respecting its Grade II listed status, and the original architectural vision of the arts center, which is now more than 40 years old.
The "Barbican Renewal Program" will ensure that the Barbican Centre maintains its status as London’s creative catalyst for arts, curiosity and enterprise—an internationally significant cultural and events venue rooted in its community.
Following the £25 million ($32 million) funding from the City Corporation the Barbican Centre will be seeking a range of additional funding sources for subsequent phases of the program.
For more information, visit www.barbican.org.uk.
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