Today, Smith Square Hall announces that it has been awarded a £452,035 grant by The National Lottery Heritage Fund to transform Smith Square Hall into a world-class cultural venue, with emerging talent at its heart. The grant marks a significant milestone in the venue’s history, following a rebrand earlier in 2024, and will help transform the 18th-century building into a dynamic centre for culture and classical music.
Made possible by National Lottery players, the project will enable Sinfonia Smith Square to continue its mission to create world-class performances and serve its communities within a flexible, accessible 21st Century performance space. The project aims to repair the historic fabric of the building, improve accessibility, expand the facilities for players and guest artists, and create outstanding experiences for audiences and visitors through upgraded lighting, sound, heating, and ventilation systems. In line with Sinfonia Smith Square’s ambition to become carbon neutral, the project will install renewable energy technologies throughout the building.
Capturing reminiscences of people who have lived and worked in the local area or taken part in performances in the Hall, forms a key part of the engagement activities. The project is keen to hear from anyone who has a story to share, or who would like to volunteer to help record these stories and use them to better understand the building’s history and significance.
The initial investment has been awarded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund to support Smith Square Hall in progressing its plans to apply for a full National Lottery grant at a later date.
Commenting on the award, Chief Executive Rosie Fraser, said We’re delighted to have received this support thanks to National Lottery players. This is a huge step forward for the organisation, and we are working towards making the building fit for purpose for our players, audiences, and visitors. We wish to embed the building and our music programmes in the local community, working with local schools and community groups to create a vibrant cultural venue, while providing meaningful training and volunteering opportunities.
Stuart McLeod, Director England – London & South at The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said, We are delighted to give our initial support to transform Sinfonia Smith Square Hall into a dynamic cultural hub for the community. This Grade I listed building has seen many uses over its long history, most recently as a concert hall and new home of Southbank Sinfonia. As the UK’s largest funder of heritage, we need to support these historic buildings in adapting and regenerating and this project is a great example of this. We look forward to working with the team to progress their plans to apply for a full grant at a later date.
A masterpiece of Baroque architecture, Smith Square Hall, formerly St John’s Smith Square, is a renowned central London venue for classical music, welcoming 50,000 people a year to some 240 concerts and events. Having recently rebranded to Sinfonia Smith Square, the building became home to Southbank Sinfonia, an orchestral development programme for young professional musicians, in
April 2021. Its vision is to improve the building, making it a world-class cultural venue in London, while nurturing young professional musicians through an annual orchestral development programme.
Initiatives also include a learning and participation programme and the establishment of a new emerging talent pathway programme.
The building, dating from 1728, is Grade I listed and now requires urgent repairs. It was bombed during the Blitz and rebuilt to its original design in the late 1960s. Work on the building is expected to commence in early 2027 and take around 18 months to complete. As part of the project, new
