Calderdale music venue saved after raising £50k during pandemic

The Trades Club, on Holme Street, needed to raise the large amount after the venue was forced to shut its doors in March as a result of Covid-19.

Closure meant the independent music venue was left without a financial support for running costs and overheads, which left the building, like many other independent venues, set for permanent closure.

Mal Campbell, spokesman for the venue, said: "The Trades closed it's doors on 14th March.

"We weren't in an immediately precarious situation, as we had some reserves, but as it became apparent how long we were going to be closed it became clear that we'd have to undertake some serious fundraising.

As the club was left with a whopping £50,000 hole, the cash had to be raised during a time when Calderdale entered local lockdown twice since March.

But through public donations the club raised the amount and confirmed it is set to reopen as soon as government gives the green light to do so.

Mal Campbell, spokesman for the Hebden Bridge venue, said: "Our target was £50,000, and we actually raised £54,000 - which is incredible.

"We'd like to thank anyone reading this that has helped the club - it means everything to us and has helped to secure the club's future.

"It's clear live music spaces will be amongst the last to fully open.

"What's shocking is we didn't see this coming.

"Before lockdown, it was inconceivable we would be the industry hardest hit by a pandemic.

"On a personal level, it's been hard to adjust.

"I've been at the helm of live music at the venue for nearly 10 years now and have put on hundreds of shows at the club.

"It's quite hard not to have that in your life when it's taken away. The world is definitely a little greyer. But I worry about the people leaving the industry in large numbers never to return.

"On the plus side, people have seen what a landscape without live music looks like, and we've never felt so supported.

In response, charity Music Venue Trust (MVT) launched the #saveourvenues campaign in April, raising more than £2 million in donations.

The cash has removed 207 grassroots music venues from its ‘critical’ list.

Mr Campbell said: "The Save Our Venues campaign has been a lifeline for hundreds of venues up and down the country.

"There's no doubt in my mind that live music would have been decimated in this country without the work of the Music Venues Trust."

Mark Davyd, founder and CEO of MVT said “The campaign to #saveourvenues is going to continue until we can be sure we can Reopen Every Venue Safely.

"We're going to be announcing a series of great initiatives and ideas to give people the chance to support their local grassroots music venue with merchandise, special events and prize draw opportunities.

"The T-shirt is a great design and we just wanted to give people the chance to own a shirt with a purpose.”

The Music Venue Trust has spent the summer hosting webinars, provided guidance to small venues, and successfully lobbied for emergency government funding as well as a Cultural Recovery fund going into 2021.

The Trust have provided backup plans such as setting up individual Save Our Venues crowdfunding pages and organising the Passport: Back To Our Roots scheme which aims to support any venues falling through the gaps.

One of the gigs for the Passport: Back to Our Roots will be at Trades Club.

A DCMS Spokesperson said: "This Government is here for culture and we are supporting our exceptional music industry. This includes £3.36 million for 135 venues across England at risk of collapse from the coronavirus pandemic.

"Music venues and organisations are also able to apply for grants and loans from our unprecedented £1.57 billion cultural recovery fund."

The Save Our Venues campaign website is www.saveourvenues.co.uk