Kenton cuts costs to ensure survival

THE manager of the Kenton Theatre in Henley says she is having to make “difficult” decisions to improve its viability.

Lottie Pheasant says the historic New Street venue was in a worse position than most people realised when she took on the role a year ago and that savings needed to be made.

She said: “When I came in, I had to make some really difficult decisions about cutting costs.

“We were in a difficult financial position, probably far worse than I had realised.

“At the annual meeting in July, I don’t think the trustees realised how bad it actually was.

“It’s a challenge but I don’t regret taking it on. Once you start pulling everything apart, it’s a huge job and it’s a huge responsibility for the trustees and for my role in terms of getting it right and not making mistakes that maybe predecessors made. We’re kind of at ‘Ground Zero’.”

The theatre’s last set of published accounts recorded a loss of £34,754 in the 12 months to August 2022 when more than 23,500 tickets were sold across 218 performances and 107 shows.

In August last year, the theatre was granted a £100,000 loan from Henley Town Council and this was followed in December by a one-off council grant of £20,000. Ms Pheasant said the loan “isn’t being touched” but represented cash flow in the Kenton’s account and that the grant would allow the theatre to continue subsidising the costs of hire by community groups by 50 per cent.

She said: “We’re committed to supporting the groups and they’re an essential part of the theatre. It’s a key part of our business supporting those.”

Ms Pheasant said maintenance of the building was a priority for health and safety reasons.

Last year, the theatre spent an undisclosed amount on rewiring, which came from its restoration levy, the supplement added to tickets purchased for shows.

Ms Pheasant said: “There had been a lot that hadn’t been done for a while, so it all had to be done in one go and unfortunately that wasn’t funded by a grant at the time.

“That work and money was committed but it was money that we hadn’t budgeted for so that had a huge impact on our financial position.

“We have a duty of care for the building and everyone in the building. There’s a lot to do and it’s about prioritising in terms of time and funding.”

The theatre’s workshop and office space will be upgraded using a £5,000 donation and money from fundraising.

Later this year the boilers will be replaced to help make the building more sustainable.

This will be paid for with a £32,000 grant from the Anthony (Tony) Lane Foundation.

The theatre’s website and booking system has been upgraded thanks to a £12,000 grant.

Ms Pheasant said the programming would be improved to increase revenue but said she worried about how the change would be perceived.

“Sometimes people do find change difficult,” she said. “But it’s understanding that actually change is necessary and it isn’t how it used to be. If the community want the Kenton here, they have to get behind us.”

Tara Macleod, who chairs the theatre trustees, said: “We’re looking at creating new income streams, mainly through the educational side of things at the moment. We want it to be a much more proactive space so that it’s more of an arts centre, having great diversity in terms of what goes on stage and also other programmes.”

The theatre has advertised six new roles which it says will support the changing needs of the venue and provide sustainability.

These include an audience experience manager, finance manager, secretary and theatre technician. These jobs will replace freelancers or staff who are leaving.

Ms Pheasant said: “Having the right staff in place will enable us to move forward and develop the business, which means we’ll have the time to implement these other income streams and increase our revenue.

“We don’t actually have the capacity at the moment to really do that. There has been an issue with staff retention in the past because of the expectation and the pressure on a really small team, which was heavily reliant on freelancers, which had its own difficulties.

“I would really like for us to have an adequate staffing structure so that we’re not putting unreasonable pressure and demands on the small team that we have.”

Ms Pheasant said cutting freelancers would help reduce costs and build a strong team of staff.

She said: “We want to have a core team who actually want to be here, to make a difference.”

The audience experience manager’s role will encompass the box office manager’s role, managing its 115 volunteers and all the front-of-house operations, including managing the bar, which is the theatre’s second biggest revenue stream. Ms Pheasant said: “We’re looking for someone to really take over running front of house and give the volunteers support because they are a key part of our business model.

“We could really improve the support and the training that we offer them.

“We couldn’t manage without the volunteers and we need to look after them better.

“Volunteering here is really rewarding. It’s important in the arts just to get your foot in the door. The theatre does become a home for lots of volunteers and it’s a really important part of their lives but we just need to do more for them.”

• What do you think? Write to: Letters, Henley Standard, Caxton House, 1 Station Road, Henley or email letters@henleystandard.co.uk