The Victoria Hall accounts for some 20% of Ealing Town Hall, and is the largest community space in the centre of a large multicultural Borough with a population the size of a small country. Paid for by Victorian crowdfunding and governed by a charitable Trust set up in 1893, the Victoria Hall and Prince's Hall below it have served the community for 126 years, hosting countless meetings, entertainments, protests, celebrations, examinations, exhibitions and more.
Since July 2016, Ealing Council has spent £2m trying to dispose of the Victoria Hall and the Prince's Hall to hotel developers. Their facilities will be as good as lost to the people for whom they were created. Not only that, but part of this Grade II-listed building would be destroyed to accommodate the hotel.
The sorry saga of the Council’s ill-fated and expensive efforts to sell off Ealing Town Hall is detailed in this chronology and has generated extensive press coverage as can be seen here, and in these videos.
The Friends of the Victoria Hall (HMRC charity reference number is ZD04507) was set up in November 2019 to stop Ealing Council ‘gifting’ Victoria Hall to a hotel company and to campaign to save the building for the community as a performing arts, exhibition and meeting space such as that shown in this video: https://vimeo.com/457474916
Although it accounts for a major part of the Ealing Town Hall site, the Victoria Hall is not the property of Ealing Council. Since 1893 it has belonged to the Victoria Hall Trust and as such should not have been included in the 2016 hotel development deal. The Council was obliged to apply to the Charity Commission to be allowed to take control of the Trust and to expropriate its property.
On 22 March 2021 the Charity Commission published what it ruled would be the final draft of a ‘Scheme’ for the Victoria Hall Trust which would allow the Council to sell its property. Incredibly, this new Scheme ignored most of the shortcomings of previous versions, including many that had been identified in the Commission’s own detailed review in April 2020.
On 23 April 2021 two local people on behalf of the Friends of the Victoria Hall launched a legal challenge through the Charity Tribunal. This has cost a significant amount of money. We decided to proceed because of the strength of feeling about how badly Ealing Council and the Charity Commission have let down the people of the Borough. The case is due to be heard in an online hearing starting on 27 September 2022.
The proceedings are open to the public but you need to apply by 19 September 2022 for permission to log in. To do so, email grc@Justice.gov.uk before that deadline, providing your name, address and the reason for your interest. ‘Concerned local Council Tax Payer’, ‘Long Time User of the Victoria Hall’ etc. should be enough to cover the final point.
Among the many shortcomings of the Council/Charity Commission Scheme we will be drawing the attention of the Charity Tribunal judge to:
It's a shame that it’s come to this, especially at a time when there are much better things that large sums of money could be spent on.
The Charity Commission is supposed to represent the beneficiaries of charities and charitable trusts not those of powerful local politicians and commercial interests.
Support our fight to save the Victoria Hall for the community by contributing to our appeal:
https://www.crowdjustice.com/case/save-the-victoria-hall/
See here for how to send money direct or through PayPal.
Since July 2016, Ealing Council has spent £2m trying to dispose of the Victoria Hall and the Prince's Hall to hotel developers. Their facilities will be as good as lost to the people for whom they were created. Not only that, but part of this Grade II-listed building would be destroyed to accommodate the hotel.
The sorry saga of the Council’s ill-fated and expensive efforts to sell off Ealing Town Hall is detailed in this chronology and has generated extensive press coverage as can be seen here, and in these videos.
The Friends of the Victoria Hall (HMRC charity reference number is ZD04507) was set up in November 2019 to stop Ealing Council ‘gifting’ Victoria Hall to a hotel company and to campaign to save the building for the community as a performing arts, exhibition and meeting space such as that shown in this video: https://vimeo.com/457474916
Although it accounts for a major part of the Ealing Town Hall site, the Victoria Hall is not the property of Ealing Council. Since 1893 it has belonged to the Victoria Hall Trust and as such should not have been included in the 2016 hotel development deal. The Council was obliged to apply to the Charity Commission to be allowed to take control of the Trust and to expropriate its property.
On 22 March 2021 the Charity Commission published what it ruled would be the final draft of a ‘Scheme’ for the Victoria Hall Trust which would allow the Council to sell its property. Incredibly, this new Scheme ignored most of the shortcomings of previous versions, including many that had been identified in the Commission’s own detailed review in April 2020.
On 23 April 2021 two local people on behalf of the Friends of the Victoria Hall launched a legal challenge through the Charity Tribunal. This has cost a significant amount of money. We decided to proceed because of the strength of feeling about how badly Ealing Council and the Charity Commission have let down the people of the Borough. The case is due to be heard in an online hearing starting on 27 September 2022.
The proceedings are open to the public but you need to apply by 19 September 2022 for permission to log in. To do so, email grc@Justice.gov.uk before that deadline, providing your name, address and the reason for your interest. ‘Concerned local Council Tax Payer’, ‘Long Time User of the Victoria Hall’ etc. should be enough to cover the final point.
Among the many shortcomings of the Council/Charity Commission Scheme we will be drawing the attention of the Charity Tribunal judge to:
- years of poor management by Ealing Council have conspired to support the bogus claim that the Trust is not sustainable;
- the way the Scheme fails to properly deal with the clear conflict of interest between the Council and the Trust;
- the true extent of the Trust’s property has never been properly identified and is being under-represented with the result that the Trust will be short-changed if the Council's transaction is allowed to proceed
- the way the ‘Community Use Protocol’ will result in a demonstrable major loss of amenity to the Trust beneficiaries – the people of Ealing.
It's a shame that it’s come to this, especially at a time when there are much better things that large sums of money could be spent on.
The Charity Commission is supposed to represent the beneficiaries of charities and charitable trusts not those of powerful local politicians and commercial interests.
Support our fight to save the Victoria Hall for the community by contributing to our appeal:
https://www.crowdjustice.com/case/save-the-victoria-hall/
See here for how to send money direct or through PayPal.
Our CampaignHere's why you need to act to save the largest indoor community space in central Ealing.
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About the Victoria HallAll you need to know about why the Victoria Hall is so important.
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Join Us!Don't just sit there, do something to save the Victoria Hall!
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The Friends of the Victoria Hall
The Friends of the Victoria Hall is supported by
Central Ealing Neighbourhood Forum, Campaign for an Ealing Performance & Arts Centre, Central Ealing Residents’ Association, Ealing Art Group, Ealing Arts & Leisure, Ealing Civic Society, Save Ealing’s Centre, Gordon Road & Surrounding Streets Residents' Association, Residents’ Association of Madeley and Westbury Roads, West Ealing Neighbours and many individual members.
Central Ealing Neighbourhood Forum, Campaign for an Ealing Performance & Arts Centre, Central Ealing Residents’ Association, Ealing Art Group, Ealing Arts & Leisure, Ealing Civic Society, Save Ealing’s Centre, Gordon Road & Surrounding Streets Residents' Association, Residents’ Association of Madeley and Westbury Roads, West Ealing Neighbours and many individual members.
