BEST PROJECT & BEST IN REGION
Shakespeare North Playhouse - submitted by Knowsley Council
A ten-year vision to deliver a world class cultural venue in the small market town of Prescot and showcase the town’s fascinating, but little known, connections with William Shakespeare became a reality thanks to a collaboration between Knowsley Council and Shakespeare North Trust. This partnership’s shared vision and infectious enthusiasm for this project secured the support of Dame Judi Dench and Dame Glenda Jackson (to name just a few!). Now the Shakespeare North Playhouse is attracting thousands of people into Prescot, providing an engaging cultural programme, creating hundreds of jobs and contributing a major boost to the local economy.
Judges‘ comment: "Crucially the judges found planning and the planners played an integral role in the delivery of this project. A decade in the making, it is a genuine plan-led scheme, enshrined in a SPD and secured through subsequent applications. Thankfully the final built out scheme has retained many of the original design features and it is a true asset to the people of Knowsley, the wider North West, and the whole performing arts sector."
Cllr Tony Brennan, Knowsley's Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Economic Development said: I am delighted that our planning service and the Shakespeare North Playhouse project has been recognised at the National RTPI Awards. It was an honour to win the North West Award earlier this year and is a great achievement that we have been successful at a national level. I’m delighted for our dedicated team of officers and partners who worked for many years to deliver our ambitious plan for Prescot and that their efforts have, quite rightly, been recognised nationally.”