'I feel we have been let down' - Cannock Chase councillors call for cabinet to rethink Prince of Wales Theatre demolition decision

In October, the district council’s planning committee gave the green light to demolish the Forum Shopping Centre in Cannock as part of a scheme to regenerate the town centre.

Council officers clarified that the neighbouring theatre building, which was closed earlier this year, was excluded from the proposed demolition works. And an extra condition was added to the permission to strengthen this position.

But just weeks later, Cannock Chase Council’s cabinet members were asked at their meeting this month to “agree to the inclusion of the former Prince of Wales theatre within the red line for the regeneration programme with the intention to demolish, subject to planning consent”. And on Tuesday (December 9), members of the council’s Economic Prosperity Scrutiny Committee called for the December 4 decision to be referred back to the cabinet.

Councillor Darrell Mawle, who put forward a motion, said: “One of the functions of scrutiny is to scrutinise cabinet decisions. It came as quite a shock to Cannock Chase residents and councillors that decision to demolish Cannock’s Prince of Wales Theatre has been made.

“On October 15, councillors (on the planning committee) thought they had secured the building. I feel that our committee should ask cabinet to reconsider their decision, on the grounds of them not having enough evidence to justify this course of action.

“There has been no clear social economic impact assessment to inform the decision to demolish it. There has not been a diligent process to explore alternative options for ongoing operation of the theatre.”

Fellow committee member Samantha Thompson, who was one of the planning committee members who made the shopping centre demolition decision in October, said: “There was a lot of hope for the Prince of Wales Theatre and I felt we have been conned.

“We were given a condition that the Prince of Wales would be protected and it’s as if people were saying what we wanted to hear. I find it very disappointing, I feel we have been let down and I feel we were a bit hoodwinked on that.”

The meeting was told the condition was made to clarify that the theatre was not included within the demolition application for the shopping centre. A separate planning application would need to come forward and be approved for the proposed demolition of the theatre building.

At the time the shopping centre demolition application was submitted, the decision to not proceed with a Community Asset Transfer to the Cannock Chase Theatre Trust had not yet been made, scrutiny committee members heard on Tuesday. Cannock Chase Council’s cabinet voted not to proceed with the transfer at a meeting in early September, in line with a recommendation from the evaluation completed by the council’s appointed consultants.

Councillor Paul Fisher, who chaired the planning committee meeting in October, said: “I believe the committee has been hoodwinked and misled. We all understand on that committee we have got to base our decision on what is in front of us.

“It is us who get slaughtered on social media. And last week the cabinet were called traitors.”