Salisbury City Hall reopens after £300k refurbishment
The venue had been closed for more than two years
Last updated 7th Sep 2025
Salisbury City Hall has opened its doors to the public for the first time in over two and a half years.
It follows efforts by Wiltshire Council to identify an operator, who could lease the venue from them on a long-term basis, with Swindon's MECA becoming the new operator earlier this year.
Local dignitaries and guests attended the grand opening on Sunday afternoon, ahead of the first acts and events arriving later this week.
The building's future had been the subject of much speculation, with calls for it to be reopened denied by former Wiltshire Council Leader, Richard Clewer, who insisted that the building needed to be returned to public use in a sustainable way, with repairs to the roof also required.
But now that doors have opened again, Salisbury City Hall Director, Justin Britchford, says it's an exciting time.
"It's been a long time coming," he said. "Four months of hard work to get everything ready, promoted and to get the acts booked in."
Inside, more than £300,000 has been spent of refurbishing the building, including extra bars, new lights, new toilet facilities and decoration, with the aim of paying homage to the City Hall's past life as a cinema.
There's also a new sound system in the main room, as well as new lighting, with Justin saying it's "all singing and all dancing".
He added it's the type of venue the city of Salisbury deserves.
"Salisbury is a great city and it deserves this place back open again. So, everything we've felt that we've needed, we've put into it, so hopefully that will pay off in the long term."
Economic boost for the city
The venue is expected to bring a major economic boost to the city, and follows in the wake of other enhancement projects, such as the River Park Scheme, the Station Forecourt and Fisherton Street uplift and high street brands such as Bradbeers and Primark coming to the city in the last two years.
Mayor of Salisbury, Cllr John Wells, who cut the tape to officially open the venue again, said: "It just makes it a much more attractive place, and this, alongside the Playhouse, just makes it such an attractive centre for visitors.
"I think it will almost certainly attract more visitors, and everybody's going to benefit locally, the restaurants, the pubs, It's part of the uplift that we're feeling at the moment."
MP for Salisbury and South Wiltshire, John Glen, echoed those thoughts and is urging people in Salisbury and across Wiltshire to make use of the venue.
He said: "If people are coming in to watch various shows, acts on a regular basis, then often they meet up for a drink before, or go for a few drinks after.
"Justin and MECA will be hoping they'll use the three bars that he's refurbished here, but there are other opportunities to eat out nearby on Fisherton Street and the rest of the city. So it does have a positive economic effect on the wider city, and I'm grateful to MECA and Justin for their investment and to Richard Clewer for getting this to this point."
Deputy Leader of Wiltshire Council, Cllr Mel Jacob, said: "Salisbury has a huge amount to offer, so this will work in partnership with all those other venues. Hopefully people will come to Salisbury and they'll have so much to do, they'll have to stay for the week. It's a really great asset to the city."
