Staff Suggest Southbank Centre To Confirm Up To 400 Redundancies

As part of wide-sweeping changes...

News is emerging that London's *Southbank Centre* is set to confirm 400 redundancies.

The arts hub comprises the centre itself, alongside the Royal Festival Hall, Hayward Gallery, and Queen Elizabeth Hall, matching a commitment to the visual arts against a potent platform for music in the capital.

A new open letter has been posted by staff, warning that "The South Bank Centre plans to make 400 of its 577 staff redundant this week" as part of a radical overhaul.

According to the letter the redundancies have already begun, and "will disproportionately affect the lowest-paid employees..."

The Southbank site will *seemingly remain closed* until well into 2021, warning:

"While we acknowledge that indoor music events are virtually impossible to run while social distancing rules remain in place, no creative solutions have been proposed to fill that vacuum. And if the Royal Festival Hall and Queen Elizabeth Hall remain closed, Londoners lose a vital free space that belongs to them, as well as access to the National Poetry Library."

The letter can be found in full *HERE* and has - at the time of writing - been signed by more than 4000 people.



The South Bank Centre plans to make 400 of its 577 staff redundant this week, &, when it reopens in 2021, to model itself on a start-up, with 90% of its spaces for rent and only 10% for art.

There's an open letter of protest you can sign here: https://t.co/SPTIqnPrcx

— Tom Wilkinson (@TMOWilkinson) August 4, 2020

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