Council Leader, Cllr Ian Brookfield, signs one of the new steels at the Civic Halls

Willmott Dixon Interiors' project to restore the famous Wolverhampton Civic Halls’ (Wolves Civic) celebrated a major milestone with the first new steel beams being installed to improve the 82-year-old venue’s infrastructure - and create new spectator balconies.

Willmott Dixon’s interiors specialists have set up a mobile crane inside the historic Grade II-listed halls to manoeuvre the heavy steels into place, while working in line with the Government’s Covid-19 health and safety guidelines.

As the transformation of the Wolves Civic gathers pace, the council is sharing the iconic building’s fascinating history and emotional power with the official launch of www.YourWolvesCivic.co.uk

The improvements being delivered by Willmott Dixon will ensure the halls remain a top-class entertainment venue for audiences for generations to come, generating millions of pounds a year and creating hundreds of jobs in the local economy. It follows similar work the company is doing on heritage property across the UK, including Plymouth with The Box, Bristol with the Bristol Beacon, Stockton with the Globe and Waltham Forest with the EMD Cinema restoration.

Set for an exciting new future - Wolves Civic Hall

City of Wolverhampton Council Leader, Councillor Ian Brookfield, said:

“After being hit hard by Covid-19, regeneration projects like the Civic Halls are even more important to our city’s economic recovery. I am delighted to see the progress being made on the Civic Halls works since Willmott Dixon Interiors returned to site in July following an enforced break due to coronavirus.

“We are creating a truly outstanding venue, in the heart of the city centre, which will bring in millions of pounds to our local economy and safeguard hundreds of jobs.”

City of Wolverhampton Council Cabinet Member for City Economy, Councillor Stephen Simkins, added:

“The programme has reached an exciting milestone with the installation of the new steels.

“The new steels sitting alongside the original ones gives us a sense of the sensitive transformation taking place of this iconic venue. And the Your Wolves Civic website enables us to celebrate the Civic’s great history while relishing the prospect of it reopening as a venue fit to host the biggest names in the entertainment business for decades to come.”

Phil Crowther, Director at Willmott Dixon Interiors, said:

“It’s fantastic to see construction work stepping up a gear. This is a significant milestone in the restoration of the Civic Halls and is the result of months of hard work on behalf of our people and supply chain partners. Delivering a project of this magnitude is always challenging and we have had to adapt to new ways of working to keep everyone safe.

“We know how incredibly important this venue is to Wolverhampton and we can’t wait to hand it back to the city when work is complete.”

Essential structural, engineering and electrical works are part of the works programme and visitors are set to benefit from the introduction of a second balcony for the Civic Hall and a balcony in the Wulfrun Hall to provide additional seating.

Wolves Civic Hall in the 1960s

Overall, there will be wider and more comfortable seats, bigger and better bars and more space to socialise, expanded and revamped toilet facilities to give visitors an improved experience, lift access to new balconies, better access arrangements for disabled visitors (including enhanced wheelchair access), a greater number of accessible viewing points, and improved room temperatures through the installation of a new air conditioning system.