The BASE Guildhall is celebrating its first 12 months of being open
A year since its launch on 12th July 2024, The BASE Creative Space at Portsmouth Guildhall is celebrating the positive impact it has had on young people in the community in its first 12 months of being open.
With over 5,000 instances of engagement through programming, events, workshops, drop-in sessions, partnership opportunities and outreach activities, over 400 young people are now signed up as members and regular attenders to the space.
Following a £1.3million investment, the basement of Portsmouth Guildhall was transformed into a creative space for 11-25 year olds, which provides access to a band room with backline equipment, a production studio with a DJ mixing space, a multimedia suite with specialist software, a performance space and a lounge/exhibition area, fully equipped with a selection of electric, acoustic and bass guitars, amps, Mac minis with creative software, a digital sound desk and a full Pearl drum kit.
The safe and welcoming space which provides drop-in sessions for young people to meet and use the facilities, also offers a programme of guided workshops and sessions including 1-1 DJ and Drumming, Spoken Word and Poetry open mic, How to Build a Band, Drum & Bass open deck and Hip Hop with Music Fusion. The BASE has benefitted from support from many local and regional cultural and community organisations and hosted works including a work readiness workshop, intercultural music sharing for Refugee Week and LGBTQ+ open mic sessions.
A Creative Leader training and development programme, delivered in partnership with SOCO music project, is now also available to 18-30 year olds, where young people can develop the skills that are required to lead creative workshops.
One band developed in The BASE, Letstalk, was even lucky enough to progress and perform on the main stage at Portsmouth Guildhall as part of Takedown Festival which took place in the venue earlier this year.
The BASE has been widely praised and appreciated by the community with feedback including:
“I have to be here, this is my space!”
“Such a lovely spot to come and chill … I’m in LOVE”
“Very open welcome space”
The BASE, Members
“We had a lot of fun! My friends and I were very impressed with it as a whole and it was great how we could use instruments we’ve never had the chance to use before. My friends are both guitarists, but one of them tried the bass and has now ordered his own to have! We’ll be back to jam at a later date for sure”
The BASE, first time user.
“Amazing space with loads of cool facilities and tech. An absolute gem for the students and young people of Portsmouth”
Local Secondary School Teacher
Youth Engagement Programmer for The BASE, Jaz Manville said “What a year! It has been amazing to see The BASE develop over the last 12 months and how enthusiastically young people have embraced it and made it their own. We hoped to have 200 members at this point, so the fact we have more than double that connecting with the space is fantastic. We have also had some great collaborations with other projects in the city, which is really important that we come together and work in partnership to have even greater impact and provide the best possible opportunities for young people”.
The BASE was made possible through a series of funders including Portsmouth City Council, Arts Council England, The Foyle Foundation, Garfield Weston Foundation and The Clothworkers Foundation.
Chief Executive for The Guildhall Trust, Andy Grays, said “The BASE was a significant development in the Renaissance of Portsmouth Guildhall to ensure that the venue continues to thrive and serve the next generation. In the last year it has also proven to be a keystone of our charitable ‘Get Involved’ programme of activities which is at the heart of everything we do to inspire, entertain and transform lives. We are delighted to see the impact The BASE is having, particularly on the resilience, confidence, mental health, wellbeing and social and creative skills of the young people we engage with, and we are excited to see this continue to flourish in the years to come!”
The BASE is also available to all for commercial and community hire. From corporate meetings, training sessions, workshops and community events, to Birthday, Anniversary and social occasions, The BASE offers a fun, versatile and inspirational setting.
You can find out more about The BASE at: www.thebaseguildhall.com