New £2m plans have gone in for an extension and outdoor space
Craig Pennington from Future Yard, Birkenhead(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
New plans have been submitted to take a Wirral independent music venue “to the next level.” Future Yard, which opened on Argyle Street in 2020, is being supported by more than £2m of funding for the major project.
The plans, which have gone to Wirral Council for planning permission, have two key aspects to supporting the Birkenhead independent music venue by expanding and improving Future Yard’s outdoor area to play live music as well as increasing the amount of teaching and studio space through a two-storey extension. The venue works closely with local schools to educate children about the opportunities available working in the music industry.
Currently a 300 capacity venue, the plans if approved would be to create a covered 800 capacity outdoor venue and bar area. The venue’s outdoor space at the moment is temporary but a permanent sound and stage setup is included in the new plans.
Future Yard opened in late 2020. Located on Argyle Street, it is a key part of council and community plans to create a cultural and artistic hub rivalling places like the Baltic Triangle.
A design and access statement for the application said demand had been higher than expected, adding: “Building on this success, Future Yard want to create a place where they can present the best new artists all year round, not for just one weekend a year.”
New plans for Future Yard that could be approved(Image: Architectural Emporium Ltd)
Future Yard director Craig Pennington said the changes would ensure Future Yard’s survival for the next 30 years. He told the LDRS: “We have always had an ambition to have a bigger footprint so we can deliver our aims,” adding: “It’s a result of the five years we have been here and the things we have learned.”
He added: “The key message from this to come through is this isn’t saying we want to dominate the area […] It’s so that we can give a high value programme of music in a way that works for the local community. They are the same thing. It’s about us wanting to work in partnership with local stakeholders.
“It’s about taking Future Yard to the next level. It’s about scale. We started off in 2019 with the festival and we have spent the last five years as a venue bringing those ideas to fruition and also about making sure we can provide those live shows and programmes at a scale that makes it a long term and viable proposition for the community.”
He argued venues like Future Yard were helping change people’s perceptions of Birkenhead into “a place where exciting and inventive things happen,” adding: “We have had 100,000 people coming to live events. That is 100,000 people that probably wouldn’t have spent time and money in Birkenhead before.”
Future Yard could see a new permanent outdoor space created for events all year round(Image: Colin Lane/Liverpool Echo)
The project is to be delivered with more than £2m. This is made up of £500,000 provided by Arts Council England as well as £1.5m government grant funding given to Wirral Council as part of the Town Deal programme for Birkenhead.
This funding was originally meant to include plans to create a 1,200 capacity music event space within the Dock Branch Park, a proposed new public space along the former Dock Branch trainline which cuts through central Birkenhead.
However Mr Pennington said delays to that project risked Future Yard losing the funding if not delivered by March 2027 but they “absolutely maintain a long term commitment” to work with the council to deliver a cultural space as part of any new park.