The scale of the structural repairs needed to parts of Preston’s Guild Hall means the work would be hugely expensive to carry out.

That was the sobering warning from a senior Preston politician as councillors were updated on the latest situation with the largely mothballed venue, which was last in full use in May 2019.

The iconic city attraction had been poised to reopen two years ago, following the resolution of the long-running legal wrangle that had forced its closure in the first place.

However, that plan was derailed in September 2023 when fears emerged surrounding the suspected presence of so-called ‘crumbling concrete’ - or reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC), as it is officially known - in some sections of the building’s roof. New safety advice issued at the time suggested that the material could collapse without warning.

A lengthy investigation followed, ultimately confirming that RAAC had been used in the Guild Hall’s construction in the early 1970s - and forcing the doors to remain shut on its main performance spaces.

What future for Preston’s Guild Hall - more than six years after it was last fully open? | National World

placeholder image — What future for Preston’s Guild Hall - more than six years after it was last fully open? | National World

The area known as the Guild Lounge did reopen for shows to audiences of fewer than 400 people last autumn, but there has been little sign since that the main Grand Hall - which can seat 2,000 people - or the 780-capacity Charter Theatre - were set to reopen any time soon.

Preston City Council’s deputy leader Martyn Rawlinson told a recent meeting of the full council that an outside body had been brought in to assess the options for the future of Guild Hall as the city’s main entertainment venue.

“The Charter Theatre could probably be fixed fairly easily, but the main focus of the building is the Grand Hall - and the problem is extensive there and will cost a lot of money to fix.

“So…we appointed some consultants to look at the best economic outcome for Preston, the council [and] people who want to go to the theatre for the long-term.

“We’re going to look at that report and then make a decision as soon as we possibly can on the long-term future of the Guild Hall.

“I wanted to be completely open and accountable about the Guild Hall from day one - and we are being - and as soon as we can make that big decision, we will do it,” Cllr Rawlinson said.

The city council told the Lancashire Post it could not provide any further details on the report at this stage.

In August 2024, the authority’s chief executive, Adrian Phillips - speaking at an overview and scrutiny committee meeting - said that unless the council was “incredibly fortunate” and could find a “low-cost solution” to the RAAC issue, it would need external funding to put the problems right.

At that point, he said “exploratory discussions” had been held with the Arts Council - and warned that the final bill could run to “several million pounds”, with as much as £1m being required for scaffolding alone.