Preston Guild Hall to open for Mayor’s Ball

The mothballed Preston Guild Hall is now set to open for the Mayors Ball as well as the Business Expo in April

It is the third time the Guild Hall will open following its shock closure.

The Lancashire Business Expo is also scheduled to be held at the theatre in 2020 and in December 2019 it was dusted down to open for the General Election count.

Asked if Preston City Council (PCC) had secured a new operator for the Guild Hall, leader of PCC coun Matthew Brown said: “We are bringing the Guild Hall back in-house.

"As soon as we can announce something we will. There’s legal issues and there’s issues with finance.

"The Mayor’s Ball and the Business Expo are both taking place at the Guild Hall this year.”

In November 2019 the Shout Network announced that the Business Expo would be taking place at the theatre on Friday, April 3.

Now the Guild Hall is also planned to open specifically for the Mayor’s Ball on Saturday, April 25.

The Mayor’s Ball is the annual fundraising highlight of the civic year. Coun David Borrow, who is currently serving, will be fundraising for cancer support charity Rosemere, homeless charity Emmaus, a charity supporting veterans Dig In and Friends of Mulanje Orphans (FOMO), a charity supporting 3500 orphans in Malawi.

He said: “I was keen to take the Mayor’s Ball back to the Guild Hall because it’s not been held there for a few years.

"I’d like a diverse mix of organisations to think about providing the sponsorship, raffles and auction this year.”