London’s Bush Hall launches fundraising campaign to secure venue’s future
The venue is looking to raise £42,000 to secure its future.
By Nick Reilly
London’s celebrated live music venue Bush Hall has launched a crowdfunding campaign to secure its future, warning that they are only 4 months away from making the “hideous decision” to close their doors.
The former dance hall has operated as a music venue for nearly 23 years, taking in intimate gigs from the likes of Amy Winehouse, Adele, Florence + The Machine and Nick Cave.
But the venue now says it needs to raise £42,000 to secure its future, as well as that of its non-profit music school Music House for Children. According to Time Out, part of the issue lies in the venue’s bank “forcing a sale” to repay its fixed term mortgage.
“We have run a completely independent venue, without funded support (except during the pandemic) or external investment, for almost 23 years. It is with heavy hearts, but with a mind to a possible future, we are reaching out to those who love music and enjoy going to intimate gigs for help to keep the live music going,” Bush Hall wrote in a statement on Crowdfunder.
“If Bush Hall loses its music status the loss will impact on local, national and international communities. We are now approximately four months away from making a hideous decision whether to cease live music at the unique treasure that is Bush Hall.”
All money raised will go towards repairs, programming, rent and marketing. At the time of writing, £15,000 has been raised.
This comes at a time when independent music venues across the UK are having their futures threatened like never before. In their 2023 report, the Music Venue Trust (MVT), said that venues are currently closing at a rate of two per week (MVT 2023 annual report), with 0.5% profits across the sector and 38% of remaining venues reporting a loss of earnings.
Last year also saw the closure of iconic Bath venue Moles, while the Night Time Industries Association (NTIA) has painted a similarly grim picture.