Elephant and Castle

In November 2024 the Walworth Town Hall reopens after a refurbishment project delivered by General Projects in collaboration with the council. 

The town hall includes:

• a mix of flexible studios and workspaces for start-ups and small businesses
• a café 
• a community space
• public access to central areas like the former council chambers will be available on at least 12 days per year 

Initially, the Walworth Town Hall Community Space will be operated collaboratively by General People, who operate the workspaces within the town hall, and the WTH community board. 

Background

In June 2017, the Cabinet agreed to a revised approach to bring the Walworth Town Hall back into use. We asked for expressions of interest and investment while seeking arts and cultural uses for the building. 

Public consultation during the project highlighted the need to:

• keep public access to the site 
• protect the rich heritage of the buildings 

General Projects successfully bid for the Walworth Town Hall project in 2019 and we also contributed to the project delivery. 

View the cabinet report and decision. 

Following a fire in the building in 2013, we set aside £20 million to refurbish the town hall. But when we expanded the project to include the old Newington Library and assessed its condition, the costs rose to between £36 to £40 million.

We also realised that we did not need the entire building complex for our services. Given the budget constraints and other funding needs, we decided not to proceed with the project as originally planned.