Victoria Hall receives £20,000 for vital IT upgrade
Sheffield’s Victoria Hall has received £20,000 funding to upgrade its IT infrastructure.
The iconic Norfolk Street venue is managed by The Foundry Sheffield, the charitable organisation charged with the task of running the imposing building effectively, safely and in the interests of all tenants, users and visitors and with the ultimate aim of improving the lives of people throughout the city.
The £20,000 from the National Lottery Community Fund, which supports places, people or communities experiencing poverty, disadvantage or discrimination.
“We are delighted that the Fund looked so favourably on our request,” said The Foundry Sheffield Chief Executive Rose Durant.
“We have known for a long time that we desperately needed an upgrade to our IT systems to make the Victoria Hall even more attractive to the many groups and organisations that are now using our facilities.
“The reality is, though, that this is the sort of project that can prove very expensive so this £20,000 really will make a massive difference both to the hall and the many groups we support, ensuring that all areas are fully connected at all times.”
“The Victoria Hall is currently used by more than 1,500 people every week and that number is growing all the time so this work on our IT systems is long overdue and really does represent our commitment to creating a space for all people.
“It will prove especially beneficial as we are now hosting more meetings and businesses conferences than ever before so this upgrade will mean even better conference facilities.”
Organisations already working out of the Victoria Hall’s range of offices and spaces include Carney Academy, Age Active, Assist and City of Sanctuary.
The weekly Sunday Centre provides food and support to the city's homeless communities on a Sunday afternoon and the building is also used by many other charitable organisations offering a wide variety of activities, classes and social opportunities.
Methodist services are still held in the main hall twice every Sunday, with various other activities throughout the week, and it continues to be the home of the Sheffield Methodist District office.
The celebrated main hall is a popular venue for choral, instrumental and other events and South Yorkshire's finest amateur orchestra, The Sheffield Philharmonic, holds its weekly rehearsals and the majority of its concert season performances there.