WORK is underway to transform Ebbw Vale Institute into a musical and cultural centre for the valleys.

Charity Promo Cymru have finally secured the keys and a 12-month lease to
the empty building and builders have moved in.

They hope to buy the building at the end of the year’s lease.
The first phase of the project, the ground floor, will house a recording
studio and rehearsal rooms, a dance studio, a cafe and internet cafe,
meeting rooms and facilities to help people hoping to start up cultural
businesses.

There will also be a gig venue, with licensed bar, which is expected to
hold around 250 people.

This is all being made possible thanks to funding from the Heads of the
Valleys Programme and a National Assembly Business Incubation Grant.

It will hopefully open in July.

Senior Development Officer at Promo Cymru, Julian Gardner says: “Hopefully
everything will run on time, but you never know what you’re going to find
when you go into a building and we have come across a few problems but the
builders have been great.

“We’re very excited about this project, it’s going to provide the sort of
facilities that you normally only find in cities but right here in the
valleys.

“In the past, due to funding guidelines, we’ve been restricted to the ages
of people we can help but here we can cater for age ranges from 11 to 40.

“There are youngsters of 11 who have an amazing talent and we have been
unable to offer them help but now we can.”

The second phase, the upper floor, will include an art room for courses and
exhibitions, offices for local organisations and a photography and video
editing suite.

The Grade II listed Institute closed when adult education courses
transferred to the new Learning Action Centre in Ebbw Vale town.
There were fears that the building would remain empty and fall into
disrepair but, following lengthy negotiations with Blaenau Gwent Council,
Promo Cymru were permitted to take it over and give it a new lease of life.
Centre Development Coordinator Sarah Vaughan says the local community have
been supportive of the project.

“They’ve been fantastic and we are trying to work with them as much as
possible and keep them informed of progress and we value their input,” she
says.